


What's Wrong With Peter Parker?

by Peter_Parker_fan_123



Series: The adventures of Peter Parker and Tony Stark [2]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: De-Aged Peter, De-Aged Peter Parker, Hurt Peter Parker, IronDad and SpiderSon, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Peter Parker gets Mind Controlled, Peter Parker in space, Protective Tony Stark, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark in space, Tony Stark is Peter Parker's dad, Tony is Peter's Dad, Worried Avengers, Worried Tony Stark, but only for a little bit, peter Parker is three
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-24
Updated: 2018-08-17
Packaged: 2019-05-27 22:23:25
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 32
Words: 27,830
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15034586
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Peter_Parker_fan_123/pseuds/Peter_Parker_fan_123
Summary: Chapters 1-20-When Peter gets invited to a new school for genius kids, Tony insists he goes. When he arrives, it's better then he could have imagined. But when kids start to act strangely, Peter takes it upon himself to investigate. When Peter goes home for Christmas, Tony notices his odd behaviour. Can Tony save Peter before it's too late? Or will Peter aid in the Principal's quest to enslave the world?Chapters 20/21-?-Dr Strange shows up out of nowhere, warning Tony and Peter about an impending threat, even worse than Thanos. The stones have miraculously reappeared and Tony holds a connection with them.SPACE ADVENTURES! :D





	1. The Letter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm an idiot and I may have accidentally deleted the first chapter, but I got it back (thank god)

"What the fu-"

"Um, what was that, Peter?" Peter was interrupted by his mentor, Tony Stark.

"Um-ah-yeah-um nothing! I-I wasn't going to say anything!" Peter exclaimed, turning to face Tony.

"Of course you weren't." Tony added, rolling his eyes. "What's got you so excited, kid?" 

"There's a letter addressed to me, from th-the institute of Science and Technology for Genius Kids or IOSATFGK for short."

"They really need to work on that acronym." Tony said In a joking manner.

"Yeah, anyway, it says I've been accepted, but I-I didn't apply."

"Well, it sounds like a good school, you should go." 

"But, Mr Stark, I already go to a genius school."

"Yeah, well, now that you live at the compound, it's a bit of a stretch to go to Queens and back everyday."

"I guess it would be easier, and they do have dorms that you can use. It would be cool. I'd be out of your hair for a while and I could get some freedom."

"Oh yes, because whenever I think about 'staying at school' I associate that with 'freedom'." Tony said, sarcasm dripping from every word.

"Well, I'll go, but only if you promise that while I'm gone, you won't stay up past midnight working on your suits."

"I can't make any promises." Peter shot Tony a strong glare. "Alright kid, I promise."

Later that day, Peter accepted the offer. He broke the news to Ned and MJ (they took it better than he expected) and before he knew it, he was standing outside the compound, crying on Tony Stark's shoulder.

"I-I'm gonna m-miss you M-Mr Stark." Peter managed to blub out in between his sobs.

"It's alright kid, you'll see me in four months."

"I know, but that's like forever." Peter moped, wiping away his tears.

"Ugh, teenagers."

"Ugh, old people." Peter smirked as Tony pushed him into the car.

"After that comment, it'll be ten months."

"Bye Mr Stark."

"Bye Pete." Tony said, closing the car door and waving to Peter as he drove away.

Little did he know of the trouble the kid would get into.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for such a short chapter, but it's just the introduction and I really am not good at endings. :)


	2. Too Nice...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter arrives at the school, but is it as nice as it appears, or are there some secrets hidden beneath the surface?

  
Peter stared at the glistening building in front of him. The sunlight reflected off of the gleaming Windows, as crystal clear water poured from a marble fountain. _The school looks nice, almost too nice..._

_No! This is a new school, fresh start, I do not need any wacky villain getting in the way of impressing Mr Stark._

Peter pushed aside his alter ego's suspicious and walked through the humongous doors. The halls were filled to the brim with students ranging from slight nerd to full on Einstein. _I'm home._ Peter thought with a grin.

Suddenly, a loud voice peirced through the speakers and echoed around the hallway. Peter had to refrain himself from falling to the floor in agony as he clenched his ringing ears. "Would all new students please report to the gym, thank you."

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Welcome students, to The Institute of Science and Technology for Genius kids." The middle aged man shouted, standing proudly. "You have all proven yourselves to be smart enough to get into this prestigious school. During these next few years, you will be challenged and things will be difficult but you will persiveer. Now, everyone at this school has to go through a check up with our school nurse and given an injection as there are dangerous chemicals at this school."

_Dangerous chemicals? Not a very believable cover story if you ask me. No! No. I am not going to go sneaking around the school on my first day._

Peter shook his head, removing the raging suspicions he had from his thoughts.

"Now, if you'd all like to proceed to the hallway and wait outside the nurses office." He bellowed, as his eyes scanned the different array of students.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Peter Parker." The nice looking nurse stated as she poked her head out from behind the door.

Peter stood up. His hands were shaking. _Why are they shaking? It's just an injection. I've fought super villains, fell from a plane, heck! I even had a building dropped on me, what's a little needle gonna do?_

As he walked through the dark grey door and sat in an uncomfortable grey chair, his Spidey Sense spiked. He jumped as the doctor grabbed his arm.

"It's ok, it won't hurt." He said reassuringly. Peter wasn't sure if he believed him.

Peter stared at the man. He was in his late 40's. He had slick grey hair and a few wrinkles lining his face. His smile was wicked. It didn't look real, almost plastic. Peter didn't know why, but when he was near him, his Spidey Sense went crazy. _It's just nerves._ He thought, trying to reassure himself.

He saw the ominous, blue tinted liquid inserted into the syringe. He felt the needle prick into his skin. He felt the warm liquid coursing through his veins. _Well, that was easy._

Then, everything was spinning. _Was the room always tilting?_ His vision was beginning to blur. He shakily stood up, before crashing to the ground.

"Easy there, Peter. That injection has some...side effects." The creepy doctor said, grabbing Peter and pulling him up back onto the chair. "I'll have nurse Kim escort you to your dorm."

Peter allowed himself to drift. Everything was fuzzy and muffled. _Whatever was in that injection was some strong stuff. My enhanced metabolism should burn it off soon though, this is already embarrassing enough._ He cringed as he was practically carried through the halls, past onlooking students and back to his dorm.

He fell onto his bed as his eyes slid closed. The only thing he remembers before slipping into unconciousness is the almost silent click of his dorm room door closing.

 


	3. Acting Strangely

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter notices the odd behaviour of his fellow students, so he decides to investigate.

Peter could here a faint beeping in the corner of his room.

"Ugh, just five more minutes..." He mumbled, falling back asleep.

The beeping persisted, and Peter cracked his eyes open to see his also too-good-to-be-real dorm room.

The walls were a light navy with motivational posters plastering half of the room. There was a big computer, a TV and a games console. _How much money does this school have?_

Peter stared at them, convinced he was still asleep. He scanned his room, now extremely glad he didn't have a roommate. _I don't know how I'd explain coming back here at 3am every night._

Peter blinked out of his trance as he realised the annoying beeping sound was still signalling him. _Ugh, time for school._

Peter stroppingly kicked his sheets off and walked over to his drawer where...his stuff was already unpacked? _That's weird, I don't remember unpacking._

Pushing his suspicions aside, he picked out his favourite t-shirt (He was sure to impress all of the science nerds with his 'if you believe in telekinesis, please raise my hand' shirt.) jeans and his sneakers.

He grabbed his backpack, his dorm room keys and walked out of his dorm, locking it shut, as he walked towards his first class.

Chemistry.

_Why did it have to be chemistry? First day at my new school and it's chemistry! Ok, cool it Parker, it's just one day. School now-Spiderman later._

Peter sat down at the back of the classroom, determined to go unnoticed by his teacher. _If I can't see, them they can't see me._

Apparently, he's a lot more inconspicuous as Spiderman because as soon as he sat down his way-too-happy teacher was pointing at him and gesturing for him to come up and introduce himself.

"Today class, we have a new student."

The class stared at him, their faces emotionless and eyes glassy.

"Why don't you tell us your name and a bit about yourself?" The smiley teacher asked him, patting his back, earning a stumble forward from Peter. _Way to go Parker, you just got pushed by your chemistry teacher infront of the whole class. So much for a great first impression._

Peter took a measly step forward, twiddling with his thumbs as his eyes darted around the classroom looking for something to focus on that might distract him from the fact that he **has to speak in front of the entire class!**

_Ok Peter, you got this, you got this. Just say your name and what you like. It'll be fine._

"U-um hi, uh-everyone. I'm Peter and I like..." He quickly searched through his brain for...something, he didn't even know what, and ended up saying the first thing that popped into his head. "Spiderman?"

The class just...stared at him. Their faces were a blank canvas, waiting for an artist to come and paint a beautiful, vibrant picture.

The artist never came.

When Peter realised he wasn't getting a reaction he shuffled back to his desk, buried his head in his arms and wished the ground would just swallow him up.

_Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. "I like...Spiderman?" Wtf Peter?! I'm so stupid! Ugh. Well, there goes my chance at making any friends._

The lesson was boring. Studying the periodic table. _I did this about 2 months ago. At least that means I don't have to pay attention..._

Peter started to drift off. He let his eyes close and was suddenly enveloped in darkness.

"-eter? Peter!" The now-not-so-smiley teacher exclaimed, making Peter jerk his head up, exposing his sleepy eyes and now messy hair.

"Oh, um yeah w-w-what was the question again?" He asked sheepishly, trying to act as if he was paying attention when really, he knew he wasn't fooling anyone.

The teacher groaned, then plastered a plastic smile across his face. "I said-What element on the periodic table is represented by Na?"

"Oh, um y-yeah that would be sodium, sir." He cringed at the stutter in his voice.

"Well done Peter, didn't he do a good job class?"

"Yes, well done Peter." The entire class said simultaneously, their monotonous voices echoing each other.

They all turned around at the same time, their glassy eyes swerving to face the whiteboard.

_Wtf was that? Ok, now I know somethings up at this freaky school, and I think Spiderman would be more than happy to investigate._

The rest of the day seemed to drag on for Peter. It was obvious something was up with this school. The students were like a well oiled machine, except they were all the same parts, doing the exact same thing. Peter could tell who was new and who was not. The new students weren't as...weird as the others.

Finally, the bell for the end of last period signalled for him to leave the classroom.

_Yes! Now it's time for Peter Parker to go do some 'homework' while Spiderman goes for a look around his weird new school._

Peter ran to his dorm room, unlocking and locking the door in record time. He threw his bag onto his bed, watching as the clutter sprawled out making it almost impossible to see the flannel covers underneath. He checked his carry bag, where he'd put...

Yes! It was still there, hidden amongst all his gadgets and his Stark phone.

_Stark phone... Mr Stark would want to know about this. But-what if nothing's going on? Then he'll think I'm paranoid and stop me from being Spiderman because I got suspicious about a school of science nerds acting strangely._

He decided he wasn't going to call Mr Stark. He'd just have to figure this one out on his own.

He threw his sneakers across the room as he shimmied out of his jeans. He tore his T-shirt off messing up his mop of well kept hair, rendering it a curly mess as he pulled his shirt from around his head. He then quickly pulled his Spiderman suit from the bottom of his bag, pushing his arms and legs into it. He pushed the emblem on his chest, and the suit hugged him tightly. He pulled the mask over his face and inserted his web cartridges into his web shooters.

_Time to find out what's going on at this freaky school._

He opened his window and flipped through it onto the roof.

_Huh, that's funny, why is no one in the courtyard?_

It was true. The courtyard was empty. Peter's thoughts were drowned out by the deafening silence.

_It's only 4:57! Why is no one out here?_

He waited for a while. Just to make sure no one was coming. How would he explain the next news headline 'Spiderman spotted on school site.'?

_Ok, looks like the coast is clear, now it's time to get to the bottom of this._

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was true, Peter sometimes acted without thinking. He had a tendency to be reckless and often did stuff that would help people in the long run but may lead to some injuries. He didn't really have time to think of a fully fledged, well thought out plan so he decided he was going to wing it.

He crawled through the school, his spider grip allowing him to go unnoticed on the ceiling (not that there was anyone to hide from) as he carefully slipped into the bright, white nurses office.

He thought that would be a good place to start, as that stuff they gave him made him feel a bit...weird.

He searched through piles of paperwork, stacks of syringes and still nothing.

_There's gotta be something! Where would I hide the stuff that makes angsty, emotional teenagers act like robots if I was at the heart of a massive plan to take over a school?_

Then it finally clicked.

_The principal's office!_

_Ugh, how could I be so stupid? He's gotta be the bad guy!_

Peter quickly left the room, leaving no evidence of his visit. He ran through the school, as his surprisingly silent footsteps carried him towards the principles office.

He swiftly entered the room, closing the door behind him. He began to search through the messy desk, in the corner of the room, when he heard heavy footsteps growing closer and closer as the ground seemed to quake due to Peter's enhanced senses.

He quickly ducked behind the desk, hoping to hide from the owner of the footsteps. The door flew open and the principal walked in, carefully examining the hall before closing the door behind him.

He slowly walked towards the book shelf, turning slightly to face a portrait of himself.

_Wow, full of yourself much?_

He pulled the portrait off of the wall like a door, still attached to the wall by the hidden hinges, opening up a little slot with a key pad in it.

He typed in the code and the dusty bookshelf sunk into the wall, revealing a large corridor, the ominous glow of the single light bulb flooded the dark room.

As the tall man walked inside, Peter quickly followed, making sure he wasn't heard or spotted.

The dark passageway seemed to go on forever, but after what felt like hours of walking, they were greeted by a menacing looking lab, filled with high tech gadgets and big test tubes full of the same blue liquid they injected into Peter.

As Peter crawled into the lab, the big metal door (that he did not know was there) slammed shut behind him as the creepy principal turned to face him, his toothy grin spread all across his face.

"Why hello, Spiderman. Or should I call you Peter?"


	4. Cover Blown.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter's covers been blown! Will he manage to get himself out of this sticky situation? You get it? Cause of his spider grip? Well, I thought it was funny...

  
"Huh? W-what?! W-who are-"

Peter was shocked, his words jumbling together into an incoherent mess.

"Why, I'm the principal, of course. I'm in charge of keeping you and your fellow students in check. Can't have anyone getting suspicious now, can we?"

The tall man stood there, his smile both sinister and sincere at the same time.

"B-but how do you know about?..." Peter asked, pointing to his mask, which was not doing a good job at hiding his fear.

"How do I know your Spiderman? Oh, well I need to get to know my students, how clever they are, their likes, dislikes." The tall man's toothy smile grew wider.

Peter stood there, silence echoing around the room.

"I like to think of it as research."

"You spy on us?!"

"Oh no, Peter, I just watch what you do in your day-to-day lives through cameras hidden all over the school and your dorms."

"Again-you spy on us?!"

"Whatever you want to call it, Peter, it doesn't change the fact that I know your Spiderman. Before I discovered this, I thought your excellent brain would be a great asset to the team but now we have a superhero!"

"T-to the team?"

"Why yes, Peter. You are going to join me and help in my quest to save this pitiful world."

"You're insane! I'll never join you!"

"Oh but you will." The tall man exclaimed, picking up a pen.

But it wasn't an ordinary pen.

He clicked it and it made a peircing screech that made Peter's skin crawl.

"Ahhhhhhhh!" Peter screamed as he fell to the floor, clutching his ears, his superhuman strength causing him to draw some blood.

The world around him started to become fuzzy as he felt his eyelids growing heavier. He tried his best to stay awake- **to fight** -but the pain became too much and he finally succumb to the darkness.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The first thing Peter was aware of was a headache. A constant thrashing in his head and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't ignore it.

He then became aware of the cold, metallic mass underneath him. He pried his eyes open and looked down to see he was laying on a metal table. He tried to sit up but his arms and legs were tied down by leather straps.

He then became aware of the calm, sinister voice, as an ominous shadow loomed over him.

He thrashed against the restraints, trying to escape.

"I wouldn't bother if I were you. That high pitched noise activated the nanotechnology in the serum we injected you with, causing your strength to be rendered useless, for the time being."

No matter how hard he pulled, pushed, tugged and ripped at the leather he couldn't loosen the restraints. _Well, this is humiliating._

"Wha- do you wan- wiv me?" He slurred, trying to produce a sentence with actual words instead of sounds and letters.

"I want your help."

"Never."

"Well, you don't really have much choice, because, you see, at this very moment, the serum you were injected with is reaching your brain, which will make you obey me."

Peter gave him a confused look, too tired to try and speak.

"You will obey my every command. I will tell you what you need to do and you will do it. Sort of like a computer, I suppose."

"You're sick." He mumbled, his words sounding somewhat normal.

"I'm hope. I'm the future. A world without choice is a world without war. A world without crime. A world without unnecessary violence. A world without sadness."

 _Oh yes, I can't believe we didn't think of this before! The only way of reaching peace is by making everyone mindless drones. Wow, our saviour is here._ His sarcastic thought made him giggle, earning a glance from the tall man.

"Any minute now you'll start to feel it's affects. You won't want to fight me, you'll want to join me, along with every other student at this school."

Peter knew the serum was working. He was feeling the effects. His head hurt and everything was fuzzy. Sounds of machines whirring sounded muffled and far away. His muscles ached and his breathing was growing slower. His eyelids were growing heavier by the minute and it would be so easy to just let go...

_No! No, I can't give up. I have to fight it..._

_I...have to...fight..._

_I...have...to..._

_I...have..._

_I..._

It wasn't long before he and his thoughts were dragged into the darkness once again.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

He felt a light tapping on his cheek, as he opened his eyes to the piercing bright light.

_Where am I?_

"Peter, are you ok?"

His lips started to move before he even thought of an answer.

"Yes."

His voice sounded deep and monotonous, not at all like his usual sarcastic, happy-go-lucky voice.

"Do you feel woozy?"

"No."

"Good, can you sit up for me?"

His head snapped up as his body followed, his mind not able to choose his actions.

"Now, Peter, as you know, I'm the principal."

"Yes."

"You will refer to me as sir."

"Yes, sir."

peter followed the tall man without a second thought. Or, without a first thought really. It felt odd, like he was there but not there. Trapped in some far corner of his mind where he could only watch as the scene unfolded before him.

"This, Peter, is the control room. Where we, can you guess? Control all of our students! The nanotechnology in the serum allows us to connect to the brain and control everything from there."

Peter nodded, his head lightly humming as the pain smacked all around his skull.

_Ugh, so there is some weird nanotech in my head, controlling me? This is one of the weirder sides of highschool that I'd rather not be a part of, but here we are._

A doctor walked into the room and muttered something to the principal., that any normal human wouldn't be able to hear, but Peter was far from normal.

"All the preparations for project m345812 are going according to plan."

_What project? What are they planning?_

"Oh, look at the time, classes will be starting soon. Well, Peter, you better hurry up, wouldn't want to be late for your second day of school."

"No, sir." Peter said, turning away from the tall man and walking towards his dorm.

The tall man was joined by a plump, bald teacher, almost appearing from the shadows.

"Is he-under our control?" The plump man asked.

"Yes, don't worry. He's just another addition to one of the many mindless slaves we have at this school."

"But what about Tony Stark?"

"What about Stark?" The tall man added, turning to the test tubes, filled with the ominous blue liquid.

"He doesnt suspect a thing."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I changed the story! I changed it just a bit. I didn't like the way I write Peter under the mind control so I changed it. I hope this versions better. I will still do an update later, but it might be a bit later than yesterday's update.


	5. Blur

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everything feels odd. He doesn't remember most days and school life is going by in a flash. Before he can comprehend his newfound role in the plan, he is back home for Christmas. Will he be able to break out of the principal's control and warn Tony, or will Tony have to fight him?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really suck at summaries. Sorry I haven't updated, but I've got the new chapter here! It was hard to find out how to write it without it being boring and it took me awhile but I finally finished it. I will try and be more consistent with the updates from now on as the story progresses. :)

 

The whole semester seemed to go by in a flash. A whirlwind. A blur.

He wasn't usually aware of what he was doing and when he was, it was boring not being in control of your own body, so he blanked out.

Before he knew it, it was the near Christmas break and he was at one of his weekly meetings with the principal about project m345812.

He was told what he had to do, and he'd prepare himself for 'the mission'.

He had to infiltrate the Avengers Compound,  _That won't be to hard considering_ **_I live with them._ ** Hack into the system, disable their defence mechanisms and return with any and all intel on them.

_The hard part will be convincing Tony I'm me. I mean, seriously guys, this nanotech is not doing a very good at being 'Peter Parker'. Hopefully he'll notice something's wrong before I do anything I'll regret when I get control of my body._

_If I get control of my body._

Peter had had his doubts for a while now, but his chances of regaining control were looking slim. He'd been trying for weeks to fight his way out of his mental prison, but he'd been unsuccessful. 

Peter snapped out of his trance when he saw that the principal was leading 'him' to a large desk with syringes lined out across it.

"Now Peter, when you get to the compound you'll need to blend in. We don't want the Avengers on our case, now do we?"

'Peter' simply shook his head, agreeing with anything and everything the principal said.

"See here, Peter. These syringes are filled with sedatives strong enough to take down the hulk, so all the other puny Avengers will be out like a light." The tall man said, handing Peter the syringes, placing them in his backpack. "If anyone, and I mean _anyone_ gets the tiniest bit suspicious or intrusive, you knock em out."

_No! I gotta warn them, but how?_

"Now, Peter, get back to your dorm and pack. I expect Mr Stark will send one of his many employees to pick you up."

'Peter' simply turned his heel and walked away.

His face showed no emotion but his mind was racing. Or rather, the trapped mental projection of him quite literally paced around his prison.

_I gotta warn Tony. What's the use. I've been trying for weeks but nothing. I haven't been able to break through and now my family's gonna pay the price._

He just sank down to the floor of his prison, unable to fight and too tired to care.

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Hey, kid. How ya been? I know Tony's dying to see you." It was Happy. 

"Hello Happy." Peter's monotone voice was trying to sound excited but he just sounded bored.

"You ok, kid?" Happy turned to face Peter in the back seet, who's hands were placed perfectly on his lap.

"Yes, I'm fine." He gave Happy a smile, a fake one, but it looked real enough for Happy, because he turned his head back to the road and started to drive towards the compound.

Being trapped in your mind did have it's positives, for example, a long car journey, that would usually last 2 hours, felt like 2 minutes.

The car pulled to a halt as the Avengers compound was finally in sight. Peter hopped out of the car and started walking towards the large building he called home.

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Hey Pete! How was school? Learn anything new?" Tony said, rushing to Peter the minute he came through the door.

"Hello Tony. School was great. It was very educational."

"Ugh, Pete, everything ok?" Tony's brow furrowed, showing his concern for the boy's odd behaviour. _Of course Tony would be able to tell something's up. I've not even been here five minutes and he's already grilling me._

"Yes, everything is fine. I'm going to return to my quarters as I am tired from the long journey here." Peter said as he grabbed his case and walked up the stairs towards his room.

"Ok, that was far from normal, and I don't believe a word he said." Tony frowned, stubbornly, as he followed Peter to his room.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all soooooooo much for reading. You don't know how much it means to me to know that people are actually reading my story! Thank you for the kudos and comments! Seeing them make me smile. :)


	6. Suspicions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter's odd behaviour attracts the attention of Tony Stark, but the nanotechnology in his head is constantly expanding its knowledge and growing more accustomed to behaving like Peter. Will the real Peter be able to break through or will he remain trapped?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, let me just clarify some things-
> 
> The nanotech is growing and becoming aware of it's self and others existence.
> 
> The nanotech's thoughts are italic and bold while Peter's and everyone else's are just italics.
> 
> The principal is able to see everything that Peter sees, but he can't communicate with him.
> 
> I hope you enjoy the chapter!

 

**Knock, knock, knock.**

_Yes! Tony, please, please come in! Please! I need to warn him. Oh god, what do I do?_

"Come in." His voice. That was his voice. The plain dragging of **his** voice echoed around his prison, mocking him. Taunting him.

The door flew open, the high tech _whoosh_ sound enveloping the room.

"Hey kid, you left in a bit of a hurry. I mean, I thought you'd at least wanna talk. Heck, half the time I can't even get you to stop!" Tony stated, sitting on the bed next to Peter.

"Yes, I mean we haven't seen eachother in 4 months. We do have a lot to catch up on." His sentence was so proper and formal, Tony's face was showing a hint of concern. 

_'If anyone, and I mean **anyone** gets the tiniest bit suspicious or intrusive, you knock em out.'_

Peter's hand subconsciously reached for his bag, earning him a concerned glance from Tony.

"Are you alright, kid? You seem a little tense."

"Yes, I am-" Peter's head suddenly snapped up and his eyes fixated on the corner of his room.

"Peter?"

No response.

"Peter!"

The boys head tilted as his eyes stayed in their position, hazy and unfocused.

"Peter!" Tony shouted, snapping his fingers in front of the teen's face.

Still, no response.

 _ **He is getting suspicious of us. What do we do?** _ The nanotechnology in his head was growing, becoming aware and living. _**We must act more like Peter. If our cover is blown, the master will punish us.**_

Peter tried to regain control. _Quickly, while it's distracted!_

Peter's hand started to shake. His mind was fighting off the nanotech like a disease.

"Peter! Peter, listen to me! Oh god, can you hear me?"

Finally, Peter broke free from his trance. 

"T-Tony?" Peter quickly shut his mouth. _I said that! Me!_

"Kid, are you ok? Don't lie to me."

"Tony, listen to me, the principal at my school injected me which some weird stuff and now he's controlling me with this weird nanote-aaaaahhhh!!!" Peter gripped his head, the peircing screech echoing around his ears.

"Holy shit, Peter. Come on, talk to me. Say something!"

**_Don't fight us, boy. We may be technology but we think like humans, while being far superior in every way. Just give in._ **

_No, no. I won't. I can't. Not again. Never again._

_"_ Peter, kid. Focus on my voice, Pete."

Peter tried. He tried to fight. He tried to warn Tony as much as he could. But he couldn't fight anymore, the nanotech was too strong. 

He felt his body go limp as his eyes rolled back and he was falling. Falling down into the darkness.

"Peter!" Tony exclaimed, catching the boy before his head could collide with the floor.

"Pete. Peter! Come on, wake up kid. Don't do this to me."

Peter stirred, his hand holding his aching head, only it didn't hurt anymore. Nothing hurt. He couldn't feel anything. No emotion. No pain.

"Peter?"

"Yeah?"

"What the hell was that?"

"Um..." He didn't have time to respond before he was pulling out a syringe from his backpack and aiming it at Tony's neck.

"Woah, Peter! What the hell?!" Tony exclaimed, catching the syringe a split second before it plunged into his neck.

"You know too much." The nanotech wasn't even trying to hide their monotonous tone.

"Peter?"

Tony's guard was down, as he pondered why Peter was acting so weird, which gave Peter the perfect opportunity to run for it.

He pushed past Tony, ripping the door open and sprinting down the hall.

"Peter, wait!" Tony shouted, running after the teen.

The nanotech didn't know it's way around the compound like Peter, well not yet at least. It was downloading his memories to become more and more like him.

"Peter, stop!" Tony had caught up to him, trapping him in a doorless corridor.

"I must complete the mission."

"'The mission'? What have you been doing at school?!" Tony said in a slightly joking manner, even though this was no time for jokes.

"You never mind that. If you just let me stick this syringe in your neck, I'll be on my merry little way."

"No can do, whoever you are. I need to know what you've done to Peter."

"That's not gonna happen." Peter stated, striding towards Tony, syringe in hand.

Peter lunged forward, syringe aimed at Tony's neck. Tony quickly caught his fist, averting the attack and turned Peter's arm towards himself where-

Peter felt a prick in his neck as a warm liquid coursed through his veins once again.

"N-no. T-this wasn't...supposed to...happen..." Peter slurred before finally colliding with the floor, as he was enveloped in darkness.

"Alright, Pete. Let's see what that creepy ass principal has done to you." Tony muttered, before picking the boy up and dragging his limp body towards Bruce's lab.


	7. What's wrong with him?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony's growing more and more concerned for Peter. He and Bruce check him over in his unconscious state and what they find is DEFINITELY a cause for concern.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for your comments and kudos. I can't believe it's got over 1000 hits! I can't wait to keep writing this story!

"BRUCE!" Tony shouted, marching into Bruce's lab with Peter in tow.

"Tony, you know I'm busy-Oh my god! What the hell happened to the kid?!" Bruce exclaimed, quickly helping Tony put Peter onto a bed.

"I don't really know Bruce, but we need to restrain him."

"Restrain him?"

"Yeah, you know, like, tie him down-"

"I know what 'restrain' means! I wanna know _why_ we're restraining him."

"He attacked me."

"What?"

"He got a syringe out of his bag and tried to knock me out. So, I returned the favour." Tony said, pointing to the blood dripping from a mark on Peter's neck.

"Why? Tony, what did you do?"

"Nothing! I asked him how school was and he kind of...zoned out for a minute. Next thing I know, he's gripping my shoulders and yammering on about his principal drugging him and controlling him with some weird nanotech, before passing out, running away, attacking me, getting drugged and dragged into your lab. There, you happy now?!"

"Nanotech..." Bruce muttered, turning his attention towards Peter.

"Bruce? What is it?"

Bruce started typing something on his computer and then grabbed some weird equipment.

"Damn it, Bruce! Come on, what is it?!"

"If what Peter said was true and he really is being controlled by nanotech, then we might be in trouble."

"Trouble? What kind of trouble?"

"You said he zoned out for a bit."

"Yeah, only like a minute or so. He just kinda...stared at the wall before jerking back and looking at me."

"Then he's not too far gone..."

"Oh for god's sake, Bruce! Stop talking to yourself and tell me what the hell is going on!" Tony exclaimed, finally showing all emotions. Anger. Concern. Fear.

"The nanotech has connected to his brain. It's controlling him. It won't have complete control, that's why he was able to break through earlier. It will attatch it's self to new parts every couple of weeks. Like an update."

"So, this nanotech, is basically hooking it's self up to Peter's head and becoming more and more like him in the process."

"Well yeah, if you wanna be all expositional about it."

"What can we do to stop it?!" Tony shouted.

"We could scan to see how many nanotech 'bugs' are in there."

"You made that up just now, didn't you?"

"Maybe..."

Bruce quickly grapped a helmet from the wheely cupboard he brought over to Peter's bed.

"What's that?"

"It's like a X-Ray machine designed specifically for heads. It far more advanced and can detect minor and even nearly impossible to see wounds."

"Wow, cool, that's awesome Bruce, but can we focus on figuring out what the hell that dick head of a principal has done to Peter, so I can pummel him into oblivion." Tony's voice was ragged and hitched, anxiety visable with every syllable.

"Easy, Tony. Before you pummel anyone, let's find out what's wrong with Peter."

Bruce slipped the helmet onto Peter unruly mop of curly hair. It's blank, white colour contrasting with Peter's hazel brown hair.

They sat there for what felt like eternity, Tony staring at Peter's unmoving body, wondering how he could have prevented all of this.

Then, finally, the screen in front of them lit up, but Bruce's face immediately fell.

"Oh no..."

"What? Oh no? Is that a good 'oh no' or-"

"It's a bad oh no, Tony. It's very bad."

"Lay it to me straight doc. I can take it."

"The nanotech has reached the short term memory. There, they can tamper with it as they please. If they reach the long term memory-"

"Then they can build and shape Peter into their own evil image, forging fake memories or completely erasing any. He could have no idea who I am." Tony muttered, falling to the floor. "Oh god, Bruce what do we do?"

"We need to work, Tony. And we need to work fast." Bruce said, crouching down in front of the panicking man.

"We only have 19 hours."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the short chapter. I'm not really sure about this whole 'memory tampering' thing. I might change it later on. Probably not though.


	8. Where am I?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's a race against time, as Tony and Bruce fight back against the nanotech in Peter's head. Will they rescue Peter from this nightmare?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope your all enjoying the story so far, I know I am! Thank you so so so so much for your kudos and comments. I hope you enjoy this next chapter. :)

**Beep. Beep. Beep.**

The noise of a heart monitor was the only distinguishable noise in the silent room. Beads of sweat dripped down Tony's head, as he darted around the room, trying to help Bruce in any way he could. Trying to help _Peter_ in any way he could.

The orange glow of the sun threatened to pierce through the covered windows, indicating time was slipping away.

Peter had been in surgery for 6 hours.

Peter had been unconscious for 6 hours.

Peter had been silent for 6 hours.

It was killing him. Tony could hear the sound of the kid's laughter in his head. _Why didn't I do more. I could have prevented this._

The sound of the quickening heart monitor broke Tony from his thoughts.

Tony quickly turned to see Bruce holding Peter down.

He was shaking like crazy.

His eyelids were half open, only showing the ghostly white of his eyes.

"He's seizing! There's too much pressure on the brain!" Bruce exclaimed, momentarily stepping away from the boy, only to return with more threatening looking tools.

"Bruce! What do we do?!" Tony shouted, unable to hide the break in his voice.

"We need to talk to him. Try to calm him down, so he doesn't stress. Stress means he'll be using his brain more."

"Ok, um...what do I say?"

"Anything!"

"Ok! Um, hey Pete. You gotta calm down. It's ok, your safe."

Peter slightly relaxed at the sound of Tony's voice, but he was still shaking.

"Listen, Pete. I need you to calm down. I-" a lump caught in Tony's throat. "I can't lose you." 

Peter relaxed even more. He was almost completely still.

"You're special to me, Pete. I know you think I'm hard on you sometimes, but it's cause I care. There, I said it. I care about you, Peter."

Peter went still. His pale face almost camouflaged with the White sheets.

Peter's eyes started to flutter open and he scrunched his face up, like he was in pain.

"Hey, Pete, come on. I think you've had a long enough nap."

Peter's finger twitched slightly at the sound of Tony's voice.

"I believe in you, Pete."

Peter's eyes flew open and Tony had to hold him down.

"Woah, Pete. Calm down, your safe."

"W-where am I?"

"You're in the avengers compound."

Peter's face went even more pale. (If that was even possible.)

"Oh my god, Mr Stark, what happened? Did I get hurt on a mission?"

"No. Your fine, Pete." Tony quickly turned to Bruce. "You did get all of the nanotech out of his head, right?"

"Yes, but I'm not sure whether it will have affected his memory."

Tony knew that the kid had just woken up dazed and confused, but he just had to know.

"Kid, what date is it?"

Peter seemed to be taken a back by this question, and he took a lot longer than he should have to answer it.

"Um, I think it's Tuesday? And I think it's September."

Tony's face turned a similar colour to Peter's.

"Oh god, bruce. They got to him."

"Why? What's wrong? Who got to who?" Peter asked, confused by this whole ordeal.

"Peter, it's Friday, and it's December."

"What?!" Peter's breathing got more and more ragged.

"It's fine, Pete."

"No! No it's not. How can I just not remember 4 months of my life?!" Peter tried sitting up, only to be pushed back down by Tony.

"Peter, it's fine. We don't know exactly what happened to you, but we have a rough idea."

"What-" Peter had to cut himself short, not sure whether he wanted to know the answer. "What happened to me?"

"Well, from what Bruce found and what you told me, you were being controlled by some weird nanotechnology, implanted in you by the headteacher of a school for science nerds."

If Peter looked pale before, he was practically opaque at this point.

Suddenly, memories flooded into Peter's head and everything else was blocked out.

He couldn't hear Tony yelling his name.

He couldn't see Bruce shine a bright light into his eyes.

He couldn't feel the pillow touch his head, as he passed out.

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Peter felt the warmth of the sun on his face.

He heard the birds chirping outside, thanks to his enhanced hearing.

He felt liquid enter his veins and he felt a warm hand around his.

"Mr Stark!"

Peter sat up and Tony quickly pushed him back down, releasing Peter's hand.

"It's alright, Pete. Calm down. I'm here."

Peter stared at him, his eyes glassy and unfocused. _Where am I? Oh yeah, the compound. Why was Tony holding my hand? Why is there a iv in my hand? What's that annoying beeping-_

"Peter!" Peter was drawn from his trance, by Tony calling his name and shaking his arm.

"Oh god no, Peter. Don't do this to me again."

"Do what?" Peter's voice was sincere and genuine. Peter saw Tony relax, his once tense shoulders, falling loosely at his sides.

"Jesus, kid. You almost gave me a heart attack."

"What, why?" 

"Cause you-never mind. How you feeling, bud?"

"Good. Why am I here?"

"Don't you remember?"

"Remember what?"

"You know, waking up. Me explaining what happened since September."

"Oh, yeah, kinda."

"Ok, well, that nanotech might have messed up your short term memory, but lucky we got them out before they got to important memories." _Yeah, lucky indeed._

They sat in silence for a while, before Peter gave him a quizzical stare.

"Mr Stark? Why am I here?"

"Kid, we've just gone over this."

"We did?"

"Yeah."

"Oh."

This was getting annoying. _Ugh, I wish I never sent the kid to that stupid school!_

"Don't worry, Pete. Your enhanced healing should replace any missing neurones and you'll be as good as new in no time."

"That's good."

More silence.

Tony started to close his eyes. He hadn't slept in 15 hours.

Tony was almost completely asleep when he noticed Peter tugging at his iv.

"No! Peter, you gotta keep that in."

"Why?"

"Cause, you need the energy."

"Why?"

_I don't know how much more of this I can take._

_"_ Because you got hurt."

"How?"

Tony didn't want to answer that question. _How_  was he supposed to answer that question? _Oh yeah, Pete, you were controlled for 4 months by this weird nanotech in your head, that your principal put in there, and you attacked me, had a **seizure** , lost some of your _ _memory and keep asking me the same damn questions over and over again, because I couldn't protect you._

 _"_ Because-" Tony wasn't sure whether he wanted to explain. Peter was barely coherent at the moment and he wouldn't remember any of this in a few minutes, anyway. "Because you hurt your head." _Real smooth, Stark._

"Oh." Was all Peter said, before he turned away and stared at the ceiling for 30 minutes.

_Im sorry Pete. I'm so sorry._

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just to clarify-
> 
> Peter's memory will get better.
> 
> The Principal is not done yet.
> 
> Tony is sorry, because he feels like it was his fault. He feels if he hadn't sent Peter to that school, then none of this would have happened. (Which is true.)
> 
> Thank you all so so so much for reading! :)


	9. Dreams and nightmares

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter's memories are coming back. In fragments and they're scaring him. One night, he wakes up with memories of a meeting with the principal. He gets an idea and enlists the help of a certain magic wielding hero. (No, it's not Doctor Strange.)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for sticking around this long, and reading my story. You don't know how much I appreciate it so, thank you. Also, thank you for over 100 kudos! Thank you so, so much. :)

"No...no! Stay...away..."

Every night, Peter would have a nightmare. He would wake up and shout for Tony, as tears streamed down his face, waiting for his mentor to come and comfort him.

And every night, Tony would stay awake, waiting for Peter to shout his name, run through the almost silent compound, to the boy who meaned more to him than anything else.

Tonight, was no different.

"Hey Friday, how's Peter?"

_"Mr Parker seems to be in distress, I would recommend waking him up immediately."_

"Ok, thanks Friday." _Dont worry, Pete. I'm on my way._

Tony raced through the halls towards Peter's all-too-familiar room. What he saw broke his heart.

Peter was drenched in sweat, his limbs flailing about and face occasionally scrunching up in pain. He was mumbling and had his covers draped half on him and half on the floor.

Tony walked towards the boy, hoping, but knowing he was wrong, that this would be an easy nightmare to recover from.

"Pete, it's ok, you're safe, he's not here." Tony said, crouching down next to the shaking boy.

"Get...away...leave...me alone..." Peter mumbled, nearly punching Tony in the face.

_Jesus, what has this kid **been** through?_

"It's ok, Pete, nothing's gonna hurt you. I'm here with you, you're safe."

Suddenly, the boy's twitching form relaxed, going limp as Tony stared with fearful eyes.

"Pete? Peter!" Tony shouted, shaking the boy's arm.

"Hmm? Whas up?" Peter slurred, his eyes sleepy and unfocused.

"You were having a nightmare." Tony stated, ready for the flood of tears he was about to endure.

The flood never came.

"I was?" Peter asked, seemingly confused.

"Pete, what did you dream about?" Tony asked, excitedly. _This is the first time he's woken up in a week without crying._

"Um, I can't really remember-Oh my god, Mr Stark!" Peter shouted, charging out of bed and into the middle of his room, as he began pacing.

"What is it, kid?"

"I think I remembered something from one of the meetings. You know with-" Peter stopped, looking down at his feet and then back at Tony, his face looking more determined than ever. "With _him._ "

"That's great, kid! What was happening?"

"Um, I-I think he was talking to me about...something. I just, I can't remember _what_."

"That's alright, kid, take your time. No press-"

"Oh! Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh!" Peter shouted, excitedly.

"Come on, kid. Spit it out." Tony chuckled.

"He-he wanted me to...to erm infiltrate the compound and shut down the...the...defence mechanisms! Yeah, yeah, and um, then to, um, knock you out, or something. Everything after that's kind of a blur, sorry."

"Sorry?! What are you sorry for, kid. You're amazing!"

"But, I feel like there's other meetings that have more...useful information."

"Well, how are we gonna get that, it's not like you can just sleep on command."

Peter gave him a devious smile.

"I know someone who can help."

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"So, remind me what we're doing, again." The heavy accent replaced the silence they were surrounded by.

Wanda Maximoff. Peter's plan was to get her to acces his dreams and get him to recall important information that could help with the capture of 'the principal'.

So, here they were. Lying on Peter's bedroom floor at 2 O'clock in the morning, Wanda's hands resting on Peter's head.

"You're gonna help me sleep and get the memories I want."

"Ok, but might I ask why?"

"I'll...explain later. Just, for now, help me sleep. I want a memory about a meeting with my principal. Any meeting, just, make it an important one."

"Ok."

"I still don't think this is a good idea." Tony sat no more than 6 centimetres from Peter, clutching his hand, not thinking of ever letting go.

"Well, do you have a better idea."

For once, Tony Stark was silent.

"Ok, Wanda. I'm ready."

"Ok." Wanda's eyes turned a shade of scarlet as her hands pushed on Peter's head ever so slightly. 

She whispered to him "Sleep." and instantly, Peter's eyes began to close and he was enveloped in darkness. 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the short chapter, but I'm tired and I wanted to get a chapter out, so I just thought I'd get the stage ready for the REAL drama. Stay tuned.
> 
>  
> 
> Thank you for the lovely comments and kudos. :)


	10. Remember

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter's dream reveals some shocking secrets from the principal's plan. Will he and Tony be able to stop him? Or will something get in the way...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been doing relatively short chapters, so here's a sort of long one. Hope you enjoy. :)

For a while, he drifted.

He wasn't sure whether he was asleep or not. He felt at peace.

Everything was dark. It was relaxing. Then, images started to appear.

Memories.

As fast as it had begun, it ended. The endless darkness. The deafening silence. The incomparable feeling of weightlessness.

Gone.

Instead, he was met with a blinding light, and an all too familiar laugh, that haunted his every thought.

"Now, Peter." The ominous figure announced, drawing closer and closer to Peter with each passing moment. "As you know, the liquid nanotechnology is not a sustainable source to inject into people. It takes too long, and we don't have much time. The world needs to change **now**." 

The tall man turned away, facing the two large containers, filled to the brim with the blue liquid.

"I have found a way to compress the formula into a liquid vapour. It is so concentrated, that it will not return to a liquid for up to 3 hours. I plan on releasing it into the atmosphere, as soon as you get the pesky Avengers out of the way." The tall man said, facing Peter again, his wicked smile plastered across his face.

"The nanotechnology in your head is the latest model. It multiplies, taking over your brain along with your memories, feelings and learning capabilities, making it almost impossible to destroy. Soon, you will be nothing more than a brainless slave. It's a shame, really. Your brain would have been a great aid to the world."

Soon, colours and sounds started to fade around him, becoming fuzzy and muffled. The lights seemed to dim around him as the memory started to fade. 

Before long, all that was left was Peter.

Once again, in the wonderful darkness.

And then, he wasn't.

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"-eter? Peter, can you hear me?" The fuzzy figure exclaimed, looming over him.

He recognised that voice, but from where?

He hadn't realised he'd been staring until the fuzzy outline made a concerned observation.

"Wanda, why's he staring at us?"

"I don't know."

"Can you snap him out of it?"

"I will try."

Wanda tapped his forehead as a scarlet light danced around her fingers and into Peter's eyes, turning them a hazy red-ish colour.

Peter suddenly sat up, the scarlet light still dancing around his eyes.

"W-wha? I-I um...M-Mr Stark?" The timid teen asked, the scarlet leaving his eyes in a flash.

"Yeah, kid. It's me. And Wanda's here, too." Tony pointed to Wanda, as she waved reassuringly at Peter.

"So, Pete, what did you dream about?" Peter could tell that Tony wasn't messing around. He really _did_ want to make him pay for what he did Peter.

"I-I was at the lab with... _him_ and-um we kinda just...talked? He was saying something about turning the liquid into a liquid vapour and releasing it into the atmosphere, or something. But! But, only once I'd eliminated you."

"Wow, that's some good intel, Pete. He must've trusted you. So...vapourising the liquid, huh. I'm guessing the nanotech is still inside of it?"

Peter nodded in response.

"He'll still be waiting for your _grand_ return."

"Then let's pay him a visit, shall we?" Peter stated, already walking towards the quintet.

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The ride to the school was serious. No lighthearted jokes about the situation. Just straight forward questions, answers and silence.

"Mr Stark. I'm sorry."

"What are you sorry for, kid?"

"Well, I could've fought harder. I could've done...something..." Peter answered, eyes staring at his feet.

"No, Pete. You don't get to be sorry. You did everything you could. You have nothing to apologise for."

"But, Mr Stark-"

"Ah! No buts." Tony raised his finger off of the wheel and pointed it authoritatively at Peter.

"I guess your right, Mr Stark." Peter mumbled, sitting on one of the small chairs towards the back of the jet.

"Cheer up, Pete. We're almost there. Now, you get to kick his butt."

"Yeah, your right. Revenge is a dish best served...how does that metaphor go again?"

 "Don't worry, kid. I can see the school now."

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Luckily, it was only two O'clock in the morning when they initially started the plan, and the school was only an hour and a half away, so it was still night when they arrived, meaning they could sneak in undetected.

Or so they thought.

"Hurry up, Mr Stark." Peter whisper-shouted across the roof.

"I'm coming, I'm coming. Jeeze, kid, don't get your spandex in a twist."

"I'm just saying, his office is right below us." Peter whispered, still louder than normal, slipping through a window.

"Alright, kid, hang on, I'm not as agile as you. For one, I'm in suit made of metal and two, I'm a _lot_ older than you."

They sprinted through the halls. Well, Tony hovered using his suit and Peter crawled along the ceiling. So, as close to sprinting as super heroes get.

They finally came to the big brown door that sent chills down Peter's spine.

"Alright, kid, it's now or never."

Tony put his blaster on assassin mode, making it almost silent, as it blasted down the door.

"Or, we could of, you know, opened it."

"Yeah but, this way's more fun."

They both ran though the door, Peter remembered the hidden key pad but, Tony blasted the wall anyway.

"Hey, look, I made my own door."

Peter rolled his eyes as he and Tony ran through the almost pitch black corridor.

They finally came to the end of the tunnel, being exposed to the bright lights of the lab.

The door slammed shut behind them, reminding Peter of his first time in here.

An ominous figure stepped out of the shadows and walked towards them.

"Hello, gentlemen, I've been expecting you."

"Yeah, well, to be honest, we weren't expecting you." Peter tried to hide his fear, putting on a heroic persona.

"Oh, Peter, I see you've somehow broken out of my control."

"Yeah, well, I plan on _talking_ to you about that later." Tony gritted, showing his annoyance.

"Don't worry Peter, I can fix that." The tall man pulled a pen from his pocket.

_No! No, no no no no, no, no. I've gotta get out of here._

"Mr Stark, we need to-" but before Peter could protest, he clicked the horrid contraption.

The peircing screech echoed around them, almost too high pitched to hear.

Peter fell to the floor, clutching his head, muttering something to himself.

"Peter!" Tony exclaimed, crouching in front of the boy.

Peter's world was spinning. He couldn't focus on anything. He felt dizzy and sick as he felt himself shake under Mr Stark's grasp. Before long his head collided with the floor and he was out like a light.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all so, so, so, so, so, so, so much for reading! Thank you for your kudos and comments. They make me so happy! :)


	11. Help

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter's world was pain. That was all it was. Everything hurt and that's all that mattered, well, apart from that annoying shouting in his ear. It wouldn't stop. It sounded like a man, but who? Why was he shouting his name? Why did he sound so concerned? And, more importantly, why did he sound so familiar?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I didn't update yesterday. I was updating my Peter Parker/Spiderman one shot series. I tried to write this chapter yesterday, as well, but it was just really bad. I tried again today, and it was alright, so I posted it.
> 
> I hope you enjoy it. 
> 
> Thanks for reading! :)

Pain.

That's all he knew.

Everything felt like it was on fire as his mind drifted in and out of consciousness. He could hear the faint shouts of what seemed to be a worried man. _I recognise that voice. Who is he?_

The shouting grew louder and louder until it was practically flooding his ear drums.

"-eter?! Peter!"

Then it clicked.

Tony.

His cries were shaky and concerned. Had something happened? Peter couldn't quite remember, his brain was a fuzzy mess right now, unable to form the simplest of thoughts.

His other senses came back gradually, as well. He felt the aches and pains of every bone in his body. He could smell Tony's cologne and the light practically peirced through his tightly closed eyelids.

He needed to know what had happened. He needed to know that Tony was ok.

As much as he knew it would hurt, he needed to fully wake up. He tried to pry his right eye open first, immediately closing it again, after it was exposed to such intense light.

Peter could feel Tony's hand on his shoulder, the sheer force of his grip practically begging him to wake up.

"No, come on, Pete. You got this." Tony voice wavered, as his grip tightened. "What did you do to him?"

Then another voice joined the conversation and memories suddenly came flooding back to him.

The dreams.

The principal's plan.

Infiltrating the school.

Inevitably getting snuck up on by the principal.

And passing out in front of Tony for like, the billionth time this week. _I am never gonna live this down._

"I have simply, jogged his memory. Or did _you_ forget? You didn't _honestly_ believe you could get rid of my nanotech, did you? It's impossible to destroy. You hear that, Stark. You failed."

Peter could feel Tony's hands shake against his shoulder.

He had to wake up. He had to show Tony he was ok.

But, was he ok?

_Well, you never know unless you try, Parker._

Peter's eyes flew open as he grapped Tony's arm, indicating to him he was ok.

"Oh, thank god, Pete."

Peter was about to reply with "No worries, Mr Stark, I'm all good now." but he was cut off by a maniacal laugh that echoed around the terrifying laboratory.

"Ah, ah, ah. Save your prayers, Stark. I'm not done yet."

Peter felt a slight tingle in the back of his neck before the tall man threw his arm out, knocking Tony over and dragging Peter towards him.

"Hey!" Peter protested, trying to push the tall man away.

"Now, Peter, is that anyway to talk to your master?"

"My master? What the hell, dude?! What's your deal, man?!" 

"All will change in time. A short time. How about right now?"

"No!" Tony shouted, lunging forward.

"Peter, grab Tony for me."

Peter's body reacted before his mind did, grabbing Tony and restraining him.

"Peter? Peter! You gotta listen to me." Tony gritted, trying to push Peter away without hurting him.

"There's no point, Stark. He won't answer anyway."

Peter's face was still, showing no emotion. His eyes, on the other hand, did all the talking. They were filled with fear and rage.

"He's still in there." Tony spat, no longer fighting, a losing battle, against Peter.

"Maybe, but not for long."

"How did you do it, anyway?" Tony may be angry, but he was curious. Maybe he could find a way to reverse it.

"He was given a trigger. My voice. He's very susceptible to suggestions when his mind is open like that. The pen activates the nanotech with a high screech that only the nanotech, and apparently Peter, can hear. My voice giving him a direct command, just reminded him of where he stands in my army."

"Your army?! Dude, you're insane! When I get outta here, you're gonna be so dead." Tony was, undoubtedly, in no place to be making threats. It was his way of staying calm. Staying in control. Wouldn't wanna have a panic attack on our hands, now would we?

"Hmm, very well. We just won't let you escape." The tall man turned to a big table, grabbing some rope. "Peter, tie Tony up for me, would you?"

Peter grabbed the rope with one hand, still holding Tony in the other. Tony was fighting, but not with his full strength. As much as he knew Peter had been through worse than him, he couldn't help but feel like he might accidentally hurt him.

Peter was not light with the restraints. He pulled them so tight that Tony could feel the blood circulation being cut off.

"And, with that, I bid you farewell." The tall man said, faking a sad look, as if his departure was one to be sad about. "Come along, Peter. We have work to do."

They were both nearing the doors and Tony wasn't sure if this was the last time that he would get a chance to talk to Peter in non-violent circumstances so, he took it as a chance to speak his mind.

"Peter. I know you're scared right now, but it's ok. I don't blame you. I promise I'll try and help you, I'll try and find you, just..." Tony faltered, doubting his own words of encouragement. "hold on. You'll be fine, I promise."

Peter's emotionless facade didn't falter, but Tony could see it in his eyes. He had heard him, now trusting him with his life, giving Tony all the more reason to kill this guy when all of this was done and dusted.

Without a second glance, Peter rejoined the principal in leaving the lab, shutting the large metal doors behind them with a loud **Bang!**

Tony didn't hesitate, he knew he couldn't waste any time. If he did, Peter could go anywhere. Anywhere _away_ from Tony.

Tony shook his dominant arm free, pressing a button on his watch, as a blue flickering hologram appeared. 

"Hey, Tony, what's up?" The cheery doctor asked.

"Hey, Bruce. No time to waste. We need to contact the rest of the Avengers." Tony looked down slightly, questioning his idea. 

"Now."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ooooo! Cliff hanger! I've never done that before. Jk, sorry. Can you guess what's gonna happen next? Some Tony and Steve/rest of the Avengers reunion(s)! Ahh! I'm so excited!
> 
> Thank you all, so, so, so, so, so, so, so much for reading. I hope you have enjoyed this chapter and the story so far.  
> :)


	12. Avengers re-assemble

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony is (quite uncharacteristically) asking for help. Even more uncharacteristically he's asking for Steve's help. Tony's desperate. He just wants his kid back. Now, that the principal has taken him, he doesn't know what to do. He's worried about the nanotech liquid vapour. What if it infects them? He decides he needs backup, but will the backup agree to help?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm REALLY sorry I didn't update yesterday. I was having MAJOR writer's block. I don't even know if the story is that good, but I'm still gonna carry on writing it.
> 
> Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoy. :)

It had been an awkward conversation (one Tony would rather not remember) but he had to get help somehow and he didn't really have any other choice, so...

He contacted Steve.

Well, he called Bruce to ask _him_ to contact Steve, while he broke out of the rope. _I mean, seriously! It's rope. I'm in a multi billion dollar super suit. I'm obviously gonna be able to break out._ Not that he was complaining, it made it so he could get back to the compound quicker.

Maybe that wasn't such a good thing.

Sure enough, when he stepped through the big doors of the compound, standing directly in front of him, looking as patriotic as ever, was Captain A-frickin-merica.

"Tony." Of course Steve would be the one to break the silence.

"Rogers." Tony was trying to put on a serious persona, when in reality, he was freaking out.

"Why did you call us?"

_Us? Well, I'm getting more help than I bargained for._

"Steve, it's bad. Like, really bad." Tony finally broke down, this enough showed Steve how serious the situation was.

"Bad? What do you mean? Is it the end of the world, or something?"

"It could be, if we're not quick."

"Stop being so discreet, then. I want to help."

"It's..." Tony stopped, wondering if he should tell Steve who Spiderman _really_ was. "It's Spiderman. Ya know, from Germany."

"Yeah?"

"Oh god, how do I explain this?" Tony rubbed his temple, the tension in the room enough to create a headache. "Basically, his principal put some weird nanotech in his body, controlling him and causing his mind to deteriorate in the process. He is now helping the principal, against his own will, to turn the liquid carrying the nanotech into liquid vapour and release it atmosphere, allowing it to come into contact with everyone, allowing him to control them."

Steve looked at him. His expression screaming shocked and angry at the same time.

"Was that enough info for ya?"

"Wait, so you're telling me that Spiderman is a **kid** and is being controlled by his principal, who is planning to enslave the world?"

"Yeah, that's what I just said."

"I'm in."

"What?" Tony stared at him, confusion taking over him.

"I'm gonna help you. And that doesn't mean I agree with the accords or I've even remotely thought about turning over Bucky and the rest of the team, but, yeah, I'll help you."

"Thanks."

"No problem. Now, what's our course of action?"

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

There they were.

The Avengers.

Friend.

Foe.

None of that mattered now.

All that mattered was saving the world.

Saving Peter.

Tony decided it would be best to tell them about Peter. Not everything but, just normal information. His name, his age, his powers. Well, _super hero_ normal.

They had all agreed to help Tony. Not _for_ Tony. For the world.

They were currently separated into two quintets.

One tracking nanotechnology and one tracking Peter's suit.

One team would attack the principal and the other would get Peter. If they could do that without violence, they didn't know.

As much as Tony wanted to be on the other jet, on his way to kick that dick headed, teen controlling, Peter stealing, asshole, he needed to be there for Peter.

So, here he was, surrounded by new friends, old friends, not quite friends, but not quite enemies either.

On his way to save his kid.

"Ok, the gps says Peter is just a mile away." Natasha bellowed, attracting attention from all of the suited up Avengers. 

Tony was practically emitting anxiety. Wanda could feel it. She'd tried to calm him down. It had worked for the most part, but this was personal.

This was about Peter.

The beeping of the gps grew louder, signalling they were drawing closer and closer.

"Ok, we're a few meters away. I'm gonna land, then we can attack."

"Attack? He's 15." Tony said, sternly.

"Yes, an enhanced 15 year old, who is currently being mind controlled. He won't care who we are."

"I can try and help him. He may not be that far gone." Wanda said, not only trying to reassure Tony, but the entire group.

"Ok, but we will need to restrain him. And, he will most likely attack us."

"Fine, we'll fight back, but remember that he's a kid. So set weapons to stun and try and not kill him." Tony agreed, reluctantly.

The jet landed on a nearby building as they ran across the houses and shops, trying not to draw attention to themselves, as not to arouse suspicion from the citizens.

Or Ross.

"Ok, the gps says he's just up this alleyway." Tony took a glance at the red dot on the gps Natasha was holding. _Huh, that's weird. Why's he stopped?_

Tony didn't have time to finish that though, before they arrived at the dark, damp alleyway.

On the ground was a red and blue suit. 

But no Peter.

Suddenly, a figure appeared from the shadows.

"Peter?"

"He's not here at the moment, but I'd be more than happy to deliver a message."

The principal came from the shadows, into the light. 

There he was, the man Tony had wanted to see so badly. To _kill_ so badly. But, seeing him didn't make him feel triumphant, it made him feel nervous.

"Where's Peter?!" Tony demanded.

"He's out running a little errand for me."

"Who are you?" Steve shouted. _Shit! I should of told Steve more about him._

"Me? I go by many names. Do you what my name or my super hero name?" He mocked a hero pose, aggrivating Tony.

"You're no hero! You're sick!"

"Oh, Stark. What have you ever done to help the world? You have been earth's downfall, while I am it's saviour."

"Let me guess, you're this 'principal' I've heard so much about."

"I'm honoured, Captain. I mean, a man like you should understand why I'm doing all of this."

"Should I understand why you've kidnapped and are controlling hundreds of teenagers, not to mention an enhanced one? Should I understand why you think enslaving the entire earth is considered saving it in your twisted head?"

"Well, yeah. That's what I've been saying. If no one thinks then no one gets hurt."

"You're insane!"

"Thank you, I try."

"Ok, enough chit chat. Where's Peter?"

"I already told you he's-oh! Well, speak of the devil, I think he's done his job."

"What job?" Asked Wanda, her hands emitting a scarlet glow.

"You'll find out soon enough." 

And with that, he disappeared into the shadows once more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, I know it's confusing since Wanda was in a previous chapter, but I see it as-
> 
> Tony was keeping her hidden away in the compound. He doesn't lock her away anymore, like in civil war, he just wants to keep her safe. She does go to Scotland a lot, to go and see vision (who is currently there.) and will probably return there in a few chapters time.
> 
> Thank you all so much for reading. I hope the chapter was alright. :)


	13. Listen to me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What on earth is Tony gonna do?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you all enjoy this chapter. :)

Tony ran a hand through his hair, stress visable on every inch of his face.

They had searched for the mad man, but he had left no trace.

They were stuck.

"What do you mean you 'don't know where they are'?" Tony demanded, growing impacient.

"I mean, I don't know where they are! He just disappeared, Tony! I have no way of tracking him, _or_ Peter. Not when he doesn't have his suit on." Bruce retaliated.

"Perfect. Well that's just great. We have an insane criminal mastermind on the loose, controlling an enhanced super kid. Wow. We're screwed." Tony huffed.

"Tony, don't give up-"

"Give up? Are you _actually_ thinking that I'm giving up?! No. That is _my_ kid out there. I gotta save him. No matter what it takes."

"Listen, Tony-" Rhodey intervened, only to be interrupted by the crackling of the com and a stern voice followed soon after that.

"Guys. I think we've found something." Bucky said, earning a few sighs of relief.

"What? What is it?" Tony asked, shushing everybody.

"Does a boy with brown curly hair, sitting on the side of a wall sound anything like what we're looking for?" Sam's voice bellowed from the coms.

"Yes! Yes that's Peter!" Tony answered excitedly, feeling something he hasn't felt in a long time.

Hope.

"Ok. He's not really doing anything, but he's next to a big machine, so you guys gotta get here quick. I'm sending you our coordinates." Sam added.

"Ok, we'll be there soon."

And with that, the conversation was over and they were filing back onto the quinjet.

And they were gonna save Peter.

Tony would make sure of it.

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The quinjet landed with a _woosh_ as they ran out to meet up with their fellow Avengers.

"Hey, Bucky. You said you had eyes on Pete?" Tony asked, impatiently, longing to see Peter's happy face again.

"See for yourself." Bucky said, pointing towards the still figure, looming over a whirring machine. 

Tony had to do a double take, because there was _no_ way that was Peter. The kid could barely keep still for 5 minutes, but seeing him guarding something like that, while being so still, so emotionless, so... _not_ Peter, sent chills down Tony's spine.

"Ok then, we've seen him, now let's go grab him." Sam stated, charging forward, only to be met by the strong grip of Tony's hand, dragging him back into the conversation.

"Woah, woah, woah. Not so fast, bird boy. We _are_ gonna take him in, but that's still Peter down there, who is a 15 year old _kid_ , so _no_ violence, unless _absolutely_ necessary."

"We may not have much choice." Bruce timidly stated, as he pointed at the shadow charging towards them, trying not to grow too agitated, so he could keep the hulk locked away.

"Stay on guard and try and not hurt the kid." Steve shouted, nodding at Tony.

Peter jumped up onto the building, occasionally glancing at the whirring machine with his glassy eyes.

He was in his usual attire. Button up shirt with a jumper on top. Tony marvelled at how adorable the kid could be. When he was a teenager, he was about as far from adorable as you could get.

"Pete. Listen to me. He's in your head again, but you can fight it. You've done it before, I know you can do it again." 

Peter opened his mouth to speak, and while Tony was expecting Peter's high pitched voice, he was met with something much more sinister.

"There is no Peter. He is gone. Only we. As a whole. As a hive mind. We are the control unit, capable of mass destruction, sending thoughts, feelings and instructions to the other vessels." The voice was deep and metallic, mixing with Peter's innocent voice. It sounded robotic and emotionless. His face was still, but his glassy eyes still gleamed with a hint of Peter's childish trait of hope and trust. But he was scared. Tony could see it. See _him._

"No, you're lying. He's still in there." Tony exclaimed.

"Peter, stop. Come with us. We can help you." Steve intervened.

"We told you, there is no Peter. And we will _not_ be going with you." Peter's muscles stiffened, as he moved into a fighting stance. "Not without a fight."

Peter charged at Tony first, smiling evilly as his fist collided with his mentor's Ironman-masked face.

Tony went flying, not retaliating at all.

"Pete, I don't wanna fight you."

"He doesn't want to fight you, either." Peter stood up, wiping away the blood from his bruised fist. "But we do."

"So you admit it! He's still there!"

This seemed to aggrivate the nanotech to the point of a mental breakdown. Quite literally.

Peter stopped dead in his tracks, his muscles twitching while his face scrunched up in pain. Tony could see the inner turmoil. He could see Peter fighting to regain control.

And he finally broke through.

Peter fell forward, Tony narrowly catching him before he hit the floor.

Peter's yes fluttered open, not focused on anything. 

"Hey Pete. It's me. You did it." Tony whispered, trying not to annoy his Spidey Sense.

Peters gaze flew up immediately, his expression looking panicked.

"T-Tony? Y-you n-need to get out o-of here!" Peter was struggling to speak, pushing Tony away as his muscles twitched again.

"Why, kid? You're safe now." Tony said, reassuringly, reaching for Peter's arm.

"No, no, y-you don't understand. He's-they're-I'm-AHHHHH!" Peter clutched his ears, fighting back Tony's grasp.

"No! Don't go back there, Peter. Just listen to me."

" **Shut Up!** " Peter screamed, the robotic voice overlapping his own, clearly annoyed at Tony's ability to contact the kid.

Peter went still. Tony didn't know if he should be glad or worried.

He let out a small laugh, coated with the metallic voice, and then stood up and ran. He ran towards the machine and didn't look back.

"Peter!" Tony exclaimed, running after him.

Tony and the other Avengers finally caught up with him, but what Tony saw made him explode with anger.

Peter's hand was hovering over a button on the machine, the principal's arm on Peter's shoulder, taking the stature that of a proud father, both of them smiling like giddy school children.

"Peter, **stop**. Please. I need you to be safe, Pete. I care about you. Please, Think about all of the people. You don't wanna do this." Tony begged.

"Don't we?" Peter said, turning to the tall man for reassurance.

"Oh, I think you do." The principal said, nodding at him.

Peter turned his attention to the machine, bringing his arm up, and stopping.

He looked at Tony, who's eyes were brimming with tears. Peter seemed to break through, giving him an apologetic stare before turning back to the machine.

Peter stared at the button, then at his hand.

The principal had given him an energy gun before they got there, in case he needed a little more fire power.

With one glance, he knew what he had to do.

He pulled the gun up and fired an energy blast at himself, that deafened him and sent him flying, taking out the machine and the principal with him.

Everything moved in slow motion, as his glassy eyes stared up at the sky, admiring the stars, before he came in contact with the ground and his world went black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wasn't much of a fan of the chapter at the start, but I like the end. I can't wait to write tomorrow.
> 
> Stay tuned. :)


	14. Why

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter's heroic moment may have saved the day, but what does it mean for him?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I say this a lot, but I'm soooooo sorry I didn't update yesterday. I wrote this chapter yesterday, but I didn't save it and I lost it. I was really annoyed and tired, so I just slept. I've tried writing it again as similarly as I could, because I actually liked how it turned out. 
> 
> Ugh, darn all this newfangled technology.

Darkness.

As far as the eye could see.

Or as far as the eye couldn't see, because he was pretty sure he was asleep.

Or unconscious.

That was a plausible idea, considering how much trouble he seemed to be getting into these past couple days.

Weeks.

Months.

Peter tried to remember what happened, why he was currently asleep/unconscious, but he couldn't focus.

Everything was fuzzy.

And the ringing in his ears was driving him insane. 

Every inch of his body felt numb. He saw no signs of regaining consciousness any time soon, or he didn't, until-

"Oh god, no, no, no. Peter, please. Please don't do this. Please."

Mr Stark.

The exasperated pleas of his mentor dragged him away from the beckoning darkness, willing him to fight.

_He sounds worried. What had happened to make Mr Stark beg? It must be serious. But why can't I remember?_

Peter was racking his brain for any memories about the incident before, but his brain was a mooshy pile of nothing right now, unable to form solid thoughts.

Peter began to drift again, the darkness calling him became too persuasive. He could feel a light tapping on his cheek, begging him to return. To wake up. But it was too late. Peter was falling.

Falling.

Falling into the darkness that engulfed him like flames.

Flames that might not be able to be extinguished.

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tony watched it all happen.

Peter regaining control.

Peter firing a powerful energy blast at himself.

Peter flying through the air, eyes reflecting the trillions of twinkling stars above him.

Peter landing on the ground with a **thud** , and then laying there, unmoving, for what felt like eternity.

Tony stared until he was brought back to reality by the enormous explosion of light, emitting from the machine.

It crackled and burst until it slowed down and stopped.

They had done it.

No.

Peter had done it.

Too deep into his thoughts to feel the rush of air or the fizz of the machine, Tony only saw Peter. The rest of the world drowned out as he ran towards the boy, fear consuming him as he fell to the ground, arms wrapping around the boy's limp figure.

He felt numb. Peter's eyes were open, staring at nothing. His brown irises replaced with ghostly white ones. His eyes moved around, trying to focus on something, anything, but yet they remained blind to the figure in front of them.

Tony felt tears build up in his eyes. This kid- _his_  kid-had fought _so_ hard. He'd fought and sacrificed himself. He was too young for this.

Tony told himself he would be having a stern talk to Peter about 'sacrificing himself for the greater good' and how he was _not_ supposed to do it, when he gets better.

 _If he gets better..._  The dark part of his mind told him.

Tony tried to shake the thoughts from his head, but they echoed around nonetheless.

He'd failed.

Finally mustering the courage to speak, he said the first thing that popped into his head.

"Oh god, no, no, no. Peter, please. Please don't do this. Please." Tears threatened to spill from his eyes as he held the boys head on his lap.

Peter seemed to momentarily look at him, they each shared a glance that said a million words.

Tony knew this meant nothing to Peter, but it meant the world to him.

It meant that there was still a chance.

Still hope.

"BRUCE!" Tony called, his voice raw and thick with anxiety.

"I'm coming!" Bruce yelled, standing up and racing towards Tony and Peter.

"Bruce-w-what do we-I don't know-" Tony was rambling. Peter did this when he was nervous, and Tony must have picked it up because _that kid is just so amazing and he doesn't deserve to be here and-_

Tony was broken from his racing thoughts to the sound of Peter mumble something indecipherable and cry out in pain.

"Bruce?" Tony pleaded, stroking Peter's hair.

"It's fine, Tony." Bruce said, calmly. _Bruce knows what to do, he's gonna fix this. But how in the infinite universe is this guy not freaking out right now?!_

"How is _this_ fine?" Tony demanded, pointing towards the pale boy.

"Tony, listen to me, I know you wanna help Peter, but you can't do that if you're having a panic attack, so you need to calm down." Bruce's words were slow and soothing, helping Tony get into the right mindset. "I'm having Natasha take that gun ahead to the lab for testing, so we know what he was hit with. We're gonna take him to the medbay and get him all patched up, ok?"

Tony simply nodded in return, unable to find the right accumulation of words to describe his gratitude.

Tony's didn't know how to react. How to feel. He just hovered, as they took Peter away from him, onto the quinjet and back to the medbay.

He watched as they wheeled him through the halls of the glistening home of miracles. Tony was no stranger to injury, and he'd been here more times than he could count. The stuff here had saved his life multiple times. 

He only wished the same for Peter.

He waited patiently outside of Peter's room, occasionally looking through the window at the boy laying there, consumed by the covers and wires and tubes and machines and-

Never, had Peter looked so small, so young, so...

Helpless.

Tony always knew what Peter was capable of. He could catch a bus with his bare hands, for crying out loud. But seeing Peter so small and unmoving, terrified Tony.

_What have I done..._

Tony took one last look before he curled up on his chair and fell into the dreamless sleep he longed for.

The nightmares would come later, but until then, the darkness was fine.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading, we're nearing the end of the story now.
> 
> Stay tuned for some comfort. :)


	15. Will he be ok?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony was beyond worried at this point.  
> Tony was beyond tired at this point.  
> Tony was beyond hungry at this point.
> 
> But he was not going to leave Peter alone.
> 
> Not again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am SO sorry. I have been putting off writing this chapter because every time I try it fails miserably, but I've finally written it.
> 
> Thank you for your patience and I hope you enjoy this new chapter.
> 
> Only one more after this! (Maybe, I haven't decided yet.)
> 
> :)

**Beep. Beep.**

The familiar sound of the heart monitor echoed around the room.

Tony sat in the not-so-comfy plastic chair, positioned with a perfect view of Peter. He would be there when he wakes up.

If he wakes up.

Bruce had analysed the weapon. He said it had a high energy repulser blast that had enough power, when charged properly, to demolish an entire building. The blast had knocked Peter's brain and when he hit the ground he fractured his skull. He has multiple broken ribs, a large gash on the back of his head and lots of bruising. Bruce said that the damage to his head may be major, but he won't not have any lasting side effects thanks to his enhanced healing.

_Then why in the name of all things holy is he not waking up?_

Tony had freaked out when Peter hadn't woken up. Bruce said that Peter had slipped into a coma, but it shouldn't last too long. He said that it would also help with the healing process, so there was no need to worry.

Yet, here he was, panic written all over his face, as he stared at Peter's still form, searching for any signs of him waking up.

It had been a whole three weeks of nothing.

No non-stop yammering about how cool Star Wars is.

No non-stop laughing about how funny 'Mr Stark' looked when he was younger.

No non-stop love spread from one boy. One boy who changed Tony's heart.

No Peter.

Tony was beginning to grow restless, occasionally standing up to pace around the room.

_When is he gonna wake up?_

He hadn't eaten in the twenty hours.

He hadn't slept in longer.

He didn't even want to think about how long it had been since he'd had a shower.

The weeks had just blurred together.

Everything blurred together without Peter.

The world was duller and nothing was the same.

_Was this what life was like before I met Peter?_

Tony was not gonna give up on him, though. He would be there for him. 

No matter what.

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tony was in his usual place, sat on his uncomfortable chair, holding Peter's unmoving hand, staring at his still face, waiting for him to open his eyes. 

He was rubbing his thumb against Peter's hand when he saw the first signs of Peter waking up.

His arm moved slightly when Tony squeezed his hand.

"Pete?"

Peter's face twitched as his hand squeezed Tony's back.

"Peter. Come on, I've waited long enough. Please, let me see those brown eyes."

Peter's grip got tighter as he scrunched his face up in pain.

"Peter?" Tony asked, worry taking over.

"Bright." Peter's raspy voice sent a flood of guilt over Tony.

"Shit." Tony whispered as he released Peter's hand and lept for the light, pressing the switch and plunging them into darkness.

"Mmph..." Pete mumbled as he searched for Tony's hand.

"It's alright, Pete. I'm here. I'm here." Tony replied, grabbing Peter's hand and doing the familiar circle motions with his thumb.

Tony stared, hopefully, at Peter's face, wishing he'd just open his eyes.

Peter seemed to read Tony's mind, because the next thing Tony knew, big brown eyes were staring back at him, no matter how glassy and unseeing they were.

"Hey, Pete." Tony said with a smile.

"Hey." Peter smiled back, warming Tony's heart.

"H-how long w-was..." Peter trailed off.

"How long were you out?" Peter nodded. "Three weeks."

Peter's face turned pale.

"Three?" Peter's raspy voice peirced through Tony's heart as he hummed sympathetically.

"Oh." Peter's attention was very easily stolen and now Peter was staring at a plant.

Tony was just happy to have Peter back. Now he could be sure he was ok.

That he was safe.

While Tony was lost in his thoughts, he didn't notice Peter's eyes begin to close or his head droop silently onto his chest.

Tony broke free when he heard a fast beep and the slap he received from someone.

What he didn't expect was the slap to be from Peter.

Who was seizing on the hospital bed.

"Help!"


	16. Please

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oh Peter...
> 
> What are they gonna do?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all so much for reading.
> 
> I'd like to welcome all_things_fandom_and_stuff who is an INCREDIBLE writer, you should go check out their story. It's sooooooo good. :)
> 
> I hope you enjoy this next chapter. :)
> 
> (Btw, I lied, there's gonna be like, a few more chapters, idk, it'll finish when I want it to.)

**Seizing.**

Peter was shaking uncontrollably in front of Tony, who was unable to do anything but try and calm him down, as his pleas exploded through every inch of the room.

**Seizing.**

Another seizure. This cannot be healthy.

**Seizing.**

The door flew open and Bruce immediately rushed in, followed by a few nurses and doctors.

**Seizing.**

Tony was pushed aside by the flood of people barking orders, as they tried to stabilise Peter, while all Tony could do was watch from afar.

**Small.**

Tony watched as they held Peter down, shouting calm words at him as they injected weird substances into his arms and legs.

**Young.**

Peter was slowly starting to stop. He looked better than he had when he first started shaking, which was a good sign.

**Helpless.**

Peter was still now, the comforting sound of the steady heart monitor, accompanied by his steady breaths was enough to ease Tony's anxiety and allow him to sit next to Peter without breaking down into tears.

He just wanted Peter to be ok.

But all he could do now was wait.

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Whatever they injected into Peter was some _strong_ stuff. With his fast metabolism, Peter should have burned through it by now, but the seizure must have taken a lot of his energy.

Tony sat, patiently, once again waiting for Peter to wake up.

_Please wake up._

He had sat there for almost 5 hours when Peter stirred slightly, mumbling something indecipherable.

"Hey, hey, hey, hey, Pete. Take it easy. You're fine, you're safe now." Tony said, reassuringly.

Peter opened his eyes slowly, as if they had weights attached to them.

"Misser Star'?" Peter asked, his eyes still hazy, but he was a lot more coherent, by the looks of things.

"Yeah, Pete. You with me?"

"I-I think so." Peter mumbled, opening and closing his fists, as if he'd been asleep for the past 3 weeks.

Oh wait-he had.

Tony let out a slight chuckle, out of guilt and honest amusement.

"You were pretty out of it last time, do you remember what happened?"

"Um..." Peter hummed, a puzzled look on his face, as he finally admitted defeat and shook his head.

"That's fine. Do you remember what happened...before?" Tony asked, though he would rather Peter didn't remember.

Peter's gaze stayed fixated on Tony's eyes, as if he could say a million words without saying anything at all.

"I'll take that as a yes." Tony grimaced.

"Mr Stark-"

"I know what you're about to say, and before you start blaming yourself, no I don't blame you and no, none of this is your fault."

Peter just nodded, a small smile finding its way onto his face.

"Pete, about what I said when you were-"

"I know."

Tony gave a look of acknowledge, as Peter leaned in for a hug. This was what life was about. The happy moments. All of the chaos and terror from before was worth it, he'd destroy anything, fight anyone, do anything to get his son back.

Because for family,

Tony would do anything.

For Peter.

Tony would do anything and more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed this chapter.
> 
> Get ready for Peter's recovery and some father-son bonding!!!! :D


	17. Getting better

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter may have woken up from his coma, but not being in control of your body for some time and then being asleep for three weeks kinda makes it hard to do simple things like walk or eat.
> 
> While Peter is eager to start walking and fighting again, Tony is not so sure about the idea.
> 
> They make a compromise and Peter is now learning to walk again.
> 
> With help from Tony.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Get ready for father-son bonding! 
> 
> I hope you enjoy this new chapter. :)

**Step. Stop. Breathe. Repeat.**

Peter was eager to get up and going again, considering he had just woken up from a _coma._ Tony himself was not a fan of the idea, but didn't want to put off the inevitable, so he gave in.

**Step.**

Since Peter was enhanced, he would usually need to do a lot of exercise a day, and since he hadn't done any in 3 weeks, his body was far from cooperative.

**Stop.**

Tony held Peter's shoulders, guiding him along the small walkway, watching carefully as Peter gripped the railings tightly. Over the past few days, Peter overworked himself. He really wanted to walk again, but, then again, wouldn't anyone?

**Breathe.**

Peter stumbled, earning a concerned look from Tony.

"It's ok, Pete. We can stop if you want."

"No!" Peter replied instantly. "No. I-it's fine Mr Stark. Can we just keep going?"

"Alright, kid. But you're taking a looooong break after this."

Peter simply hummed in confirmation.

"Movie?" Peter found himself asking.

"Yeah, I'll get the popcorn and we can just chill. Just don't pick anything lame like-" Tony was interrupted by the sudden, monotonous outburst from Peter, signifying his mind was made up.

"Star Wars."

"Like that..." Tony finished, knowing there was no arguing with Peter.

**Repeat.**

They had managed to walk a few more steps when Peter felt dizzy.

"Woah..." Peter mumbled, clenching his head. 

"You ok, Pete?" Tony asked, worriedly.

"Yeah, yeah, 'm fine." Peter trailed off, continuing to walk, leaving Tony behind.

"Hey, hey kid. You can't just leave me like that." Tony said, rushing to Peter's side.

"It's fine, Mr Stark." But it wasn't fine. Peter found himself tilting, as he tried to focus on something. "I think I'm just gonna stop a minute..."

Peter's legs suddenly buckled beneath him, as the ground came closer to his face, or was it the other way around? Luckily, Tony was there to catch him before his face collided with the wooden floor.

"Woah, Pete. Hey. Come on, stay with me." Tony said firmly, shaking the boy.

Peter's eyes were closed and his breathing was heavy and even.

 _Whew, he's just asleep._ Tony breathed out a sigh of relief, as he lay Peter on the floor and went to get a stretcher.

How many times does Peter have to wake up in a hospital bed to learn about something called 'self preservation'.

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Peter felt the cool liquid flow into his veins, as the warm glow of the sun rested on his face.

He felt heavy and light at the same time, feeling like he was falling and flying. The hazy cloud covering his mind, made it so he couldn't form any memories of thoughts as to 'how' and 'why' he is...wherever he is.

He tried to open his eyes, but found they were heavy and it would take a lot of his energy to open them, so he didn't bother.

That was, until he felt the familiar presence of a warm hand resting on his, the circle motions, instantly soothing his worrisome assumptions.

_Tony._

Now Peter _knew_ that he had to open his eyes. _Tony must be worried sick._

Peter pried his heavy eyelids open, as his pupils stared at the man in front of him.

"Hey, kid." He said simply.

"Hey." 

"Next time you want to give me a heart attack, might wanna give me a heads up."

"Sorry Mr Stark."

"That's ok, kid. I just don't want you to overwork yourself." 

Peter nodded sympathetically, as he glanced around the room, before locking his eyes with the big flat-screen TV, directly in front of his bed.

"Well, since we're both here...And you promised!" Peter whined, motioning for Tony to sit next to him in bed.

"Fine." Tony mumbled, though he was really happy inside. "What movie do you wanna watch?" 

"Hmmm..." Peter trailed off, his finger adorably positioned on his chin, as he pondered which movie they would watch. "Empire Strikes Back or A New Hope?"

"I have no idea what you just said, but the first one." Tony added, simply accepting the fact that they were both probably, more than likely, Star Wars films.

"Yay!" Peter cheered, as he pointed at the correct dvd, waiting for Tony to put the movie on and return to the bed.

About seven minutes into the film, Tony came to a realisation.

"Hey, this is that film you've watched sixteen times, isn't it?"

"Maybe..." Peter mumbled, sinking into the covers, hiding his reddening face.

As the film progressed, Tony noticed that Peter had gotten closer to him. At this point in time, Peter's head was rested perfectly on Tony's shoulder. 

Tony stared at his son. _His son._ He loved this boy with all his heart, and he would protect him no matter what.

He would stand by his side throughout all of the hardships and stumbles, and he would be there to pick him right back up again.

But for now, watching Star Wars with him wasn't so bad.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all so much for reading!
> 
> There are still a few more chapters, so stay tuned! :)


	18. Two steps forward, one step back

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter is getting better and better at walking. His speech has improved and he can even eat on his own, well, whilst his hand shakes about forty miles an hour.
> 
> But, as Tony knows, nothing can stay fine for long, and Peter may have to deal with something for the rest of his life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry I didn't update yesterday. I felt so sick. I just wanted to say, I'm back on daily updates and I have a surprise next chapter, so stay tuned!

"Slow down, Pete." Tony chuckled, as he helped Peter direct his shaky hand towards his mouth.

"Sorry, Mr Stark." Peter mumbled with a mouthful of food.

Tony simply shook his head in response, a big smile plastered across his face.

Peter shovelled the last of his food into his mouth, licked his lips and exclaimed "Done!".

"Wow, kid. That's probably the best you've been. I'm proud of you." Tony said, like a proud father.

"Thanks Mr-"

"Seriously, kid. We're past formalities at this point. Call me Tony."

"Ok, Mr-I mean Tony." Peter turned red, cringing at his inability to speak without being awkward.

Tony laughed, pulling away the table from Peter's hospital bed.

"So, kid. Whatcha wanna do?"

"Oh! We could watch a movie or play a board game or we could go to..." All at once, Peter's gaze drifted from Tony's face to the corner of the room and his mouth slackened. His eyes glazed over and he blinked slowly every once in a while, while swaying side to side.

"Peter?" Tony asked, a wave of concern washing over him.

"Peter!" Tony shouted, not caring about who he disturbed.

"Oh god, no. No, not again." Tony rambled, shaking Peter.

He quickly launched for the call button, when it became obvious he wasn't getting a response from Peter.

A few moments later, Bruce charged into the room.

"What's wrong?" He demanded, kneeling next to Peter.

"I-I don't know. We were just talking and then he...did that." Tony said shakily, pointing to Peter.

Bruce grabbed Peter's hand.

"Peter? Peter can you hear me? Squeeze my hand if you can."

No response.

Bruce released his grasp, picked up a penlight and shone it into Peter's eyes.

Peter didn't even blink.

"Bruce? What's wrong?" Tony asked, growing impatient.

Bruce moved the pen away from Peter's face and turned to Tony, his face a look of concern and confusion.

"Well, he appears to be unresponsive. It may be an absence seizure."

"What's tha-"

Tony was interrupted by Peter jerking his head slightly and bringing his hands up to his face, blinking in confusion.

"Huh? W-wha's this? Where am I?" Peter asked, his words slurred and unsure.

"It's fine, Pete. You're in the tower, the medbay level. I'm here, Bruce is here. You're safe." Tony said, holding Peter's hands and doing the familiar circle motions on the back of it using his thumb.

"I-I-wha' was I saying again?" Peter asked, seeming a bit more confident in his words.

"You...um..." Tony racked his brain for the memory. With everything that had just happened, it had completely slipped his mind.

"You wanted to watch a movie." Tony said finally, earning a small smile from Peter.

"Oh, um, yeah." Peter seemed reassured, obtaining his usual posture once more.

Tony quickly got up, putting the movie he _knew_ Peter would pick into the dvd player, and pulled a blanket over him.

"How about you start watching the film, Pete. Me and Bruce just need to have a quick chat outside." Tony said, already holding the door handle.

Peter hummed happily, his attention turning towards the large TV screen.

Tony slid into the hallway, Bruce following quickly, and he let out a sigh of relief, seeming to release all of the anxiety that had bubbled up over the past few minutes.

"Bruce, what the hell just happened?" Tony asked, turning to Bruce.

"He seems to be suffering from absence seizures. Many patients suffer from them after a coma. It will likely pass with time, but we need to be around him constantly until it does."

"Whew. Thank god, for a second there, I thought the nanotech was trying to take over again." Tony stated, still getting a chill whenever he heard that name.

"Tony, it's fine. All of the nanotechnology was destroyed in the blast, the principal's in prison and all of the students were rid of the nanotech and returned to their homes with a cover story."

"Jeeze, Bruce. When did you get so good at exposition?"

"Anyway, we'll need to remind Peter where he if he has one. Make him feel safe. He will forget many things after these episodes, sometimes even you or himself. We need to be there for him."

Tony nodded in agreement, glancing through the window at the smiling boy, staring contently at the screen that was filled with stars and planets from galaxies he could only dream of visiting.

He would be there for him. No matter what.

Peter was his son,

and Tony was his father.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My friend was in a coma a coulple years back. Afterwards, she suffered from these absence seizures. She's fine now, she doesn't get them anymore, I thought it might be a good addition to the story.
> 
> I can't wait to tell you the surprise next chapter! :D
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this chapter. :3


	19. Peter, would you mind if...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The next few days were tough. Peter's absence seizures happened every so often and Tony would have to remind him of simple things or who he was, depending on Peter's confusion when he blinked out of his trance-like state.
> 
> Tony and Peter had been through so much together. They were like a small family.
> 
> Huh.
> 
> How about that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am happy to announce that there is only one more chapter left of this story. Joking, I'm quite sad to be ending this story, as it is the first one I have done, but I have a surprise at the end of the story in the notes, so...
> 
> Enjoy! :3

**Blank.**

Waiting. Tony wasn't the most patient man in the world, but when your son decides to clock out every so often, without so much as a heads up, Tony had begun to learn the meaning of the word _patient._

**Emotionless.**

He'd just wait for Peter to return to the land of the living. Tony would watch Peter, who, even though he was staring at a plant for several seconds, panicked as soon as he left his trance and wouldn't stop unless Tony did the familiar circle motions on the back of his hand.

**Not Peter.**

He kept telling himself _it'll be over soon, just deal with it._ But no matter how much he waited, wished, _heck_ he'd even prayed, but nothing. It didn't stop. Yes, they may have gotten father apart and yes, they may be shorter, but they still happened. How was he gonna be Spiderman if he disappeared to some far off corner of his mind for two minutes in the middle of a battle?

 _Not now._ Tony told himself, turning his attention to Peter, who was, of course, staring at his usual spot.

The plant.

Tony waited patiently for Peter to return. To say his usual mantra. To tell him who he was, where he was. That everything was fine.

_Was it?_

This particular seizure was a long one, and it gave Tony time to think about things.

Things he had been thinking about for a looooooooong time.

**My son.**

Yes, Tony was Peter's legal guardian since May died, but that was it. With everything that had happened, Tony felt close to Peter. He already referred to him as _his kid_ , was there some paternal instinct deeply embedded within him trying to break out?

_No._

Yet, here he was, watching his son have a seizure, being his lifeline. Maybe he did want to be...

A dad.

Peter's dad.

He'd just have to ask him when he-

Peter's head jerked to the side and he lost his balance, Tony caught him as he blinked in confusion, shaking slightly under Tony's grasp.

does that.

"I-I-huh? Wha' I-um..." Peter struggled to find the right words to express his confusion.

"Hey, Pete. It's fine. You're in Avengers tower, in the medbay. Your name is Peter, I'm Tony. You like Star Wars and when I rub the back of your hand. Like this." Tony grabbed Peter's hand and did the familiar circle motion. Peter sunk down into his bed almost instantaneously, calmness taking over him.

"You good?" Tony asked after minutes of silence.

"Yeah, yeah." Peter mumbled, seeming to be deep in thought.

After the silence that hung in the air was almost unbearable, Peter broke it with a question that also broke Tony's heart.

"Why do I keep forgetting things?" Peter asked, unaware of how much guilt this question ignited.

"You-" Tony paused, trying to find the right words to explain their predicament. "You know when you were in a coma?" Peter nodded, eagerly staring at Tony, as if he held all of the answers to the universe. "When you woke up, there were some...side effects."

Peter tilted his head in confusion, signalling for Tony to explain in more detail.

"You get these...absence seizures. They're fine, you know, you kinda just...drift off. You completely shut off from the world for a bit and then you 'wake up' again." Tony continued to rub the back of Peter's hand.

"Oh..." Was all Peter had to say.

The rest of the day was spent watching Star Wars and eating popcorn.

He didn't have another seizure that day.

Not one.

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It had been three days since Peter's last seizure.

Tony was completely ecstatic, constantly reminding Bruce of Peter's progress. 

Bruce had given Peter a check up. He said Peter may suffer from one or two more, but he was in the clear.

Tony could now ask the question that had been bubbling inside of him without worrying that Peter would drift off and completely forget the conversation.

They were in their usual spot, sitting comfortably in the bed, watching Star Wars for the umpteenth time, when Tony finally asked the question that had been snatching his every thought.

"Peter?" Tony asked, turning to Peter with a grin that showed his excitement and nervousness.

"Yeah, Tony." Peter replied, turning to Tony.

"Would you..." Tony trailed off, not wanting to know the answer to the question he so desperately wanted the answer to.

"mind if..." Tony stopped, taking a minute to really think about what he was doing. There was no turning back once he said this, and that was ok with him.

"I adopted you?" Once those words were in the air, Peter face fell still.

"Oh god, I made it weird didn't I? Oh I'm sorry, Pete. Ugh, I'm such a dick. God, I shouldn't have said anything, why did I-" 

Tony was interrupted by the sound of Peter's incessant giggling.

"Tony. Stop. Of course I want you to adopt me." Peter smiled with so much happiness that the whole world seemed brighter.

"Oh, Pete" Tony brought Peter into the tightest, loving hug ever.

"It's settled then. I'll call social services and have them send the adoption papers." 

Peters grin grew even wider, as he stared admirably at Tony.

 _This_ is what Tony had been missing.

Peter.

His son.

And he couldn't be happier.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A SEQUEL! 
> 
> I am doing a sequel. It's going to be about Peter and Tony having some father-son adventure, but it will be a story, with a plot and everything.
> 
> I just need to figure out what that plot will be. 
> 
> Lol.
> 
> I hope you enjoyed the chapter and will enjoy the next and final chapter of this story. :)


	20. Happy endings?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony had never been happier. Life was finally starting to look good again, after what happened with Thanos.
> 
> But things can never stay peaceful for long...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just wanted to say a big thank you to each and every one of you that have read my story. 
> 
> I can't thank you enough. Over 4000 hits and 188 kudos?!??  
> That's insane!!!
> 
> Enjoy! :)

Love.

That is what Tony felt at that moment in time. The unabashed love for his adoptive son, engulfed him, making him feel all warm and fuzzy.

When news got out about the adoption, all of the Avengers were exploding with excitement and praise.

That's how they ended up at a party, surrounded by all of the Avengers.

That's how Peter ended up talking to _the_ Captain America, while Tony wrapped his arm around him, showing parental love.

Peter was so happy. Like, happier than he'd been in a long time. When aunt May died, he felt like his life was over, but when Tony stepped into his life, something just...clicked.

Like a missing piece of the puzzle just worked its way into Peter's life and fixed everything. Peter loved Tony with all his heart, and Tony loved Peter.

Peter understood the consequences of his actions, though. And by that, he knew that Tony was gonna be _way_ too protective during missions.

He'd just have to deal with that.

While talking to Mr Captain America, sir. _"Seriously kid, call me Steve."_ Peter felt a slight hum at the back of his neck. _Nothing to worry about, it's just crowded in here, that's all._

The odd buzzing sensation carried on for the rest of the night, indicating to Peter something was off, but, Peter couldn't see anything wrong.

Tony noticed his son's odd behaviour and pulled him to the side of the room, his face falling with concern.

"Hey, kid, you feeling ok?" 

"Um, yeah, yeah..." Peter was feeling distant, like he wasn't actually there, as he scanned the room for any indication of danger.

"Ok, yeah, I don't believe that for a second." Tony waited for an answer and then tapped his shoulder when he didn't get one. "Hey, what's wrong?"

"Um, it's, uh, it's my senses. They're a bit...off." Peter said, turning to Tony, but he still seemed skittish.

"Off? What do you mean off?"

"I mean I feel like something's about to-"

As if on cue, a loud bang could be heard coming from the upper area of the compound.

"I guess they weren't wrong." Tony stated, covering Peter protectively.

"Dad?" Peter asked, the familiar buzz in the back of his neck had returned, more prominent than ever.

"What?" Tony stated, still running through the halls.

"Wait!" Peter shouted, it was too late, the halls were covered in rubble and Peter and Tony were completely cut off from the rest of the Avengers.

"Well that's not good." Tony breathed, showing his concern slightly.

A sparkling portal appeared in front of them, making them jump backwards.

A figure appeared from the portal, one neither Tony or Peter thought they would see again.

"Come with me if you want to live."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I kinda grew attached to my story and now I can't leave it. I also feel like there is more I can do with this story. Sorry I said I'd do a sequel, I just really enjoy writing this. It will still be about Peter and Tony having FATHER SON ADVENTURES!!!
> 
> I really hope you have enjoyed the story so far, and I'm sorry for changing my mind. 
> 
> :)


	21. New threats.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What other choice did they have? 
> 
> Why can nothing ever stay ok?
> 
> Why can't Tony live a normal life?
> 
> Why can't he keep Peter safe?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I REALLY WANNA CRY. OR SCREAM. MAYBE BOTH.
> 
> I was two lines away from finishing. TWO LINES. And then, it just decided to refresh the page and I. Lost. Everything.
> 
> It was actually alright, I actually liked my work for once. But Noooooo, the universe was like "Well shit, we can't be having happiness, now can we. I'll sort that out."
> 
> AGH!!!!
> 
> I tried to write from memory. Oh my god, why universe? Why?!?!?
> 
> Ugh, so annoying.
> 
> Sorry for my little rant.
> 
> Darn all this newfangled technology.
> 
> I hope you enjoy this (stress-inducing) chapter.
> 
> :)
> 
> (Btw, Peter had/has developed PTSD after the events of infinity war and MY take on what's gonna happen in Avengers 4. I don't know what it's like to have a PTSD attack, but I looked into it and people sometimes have flashbacks and feel like they are actually there. So that's what I did for Peter.)
> 
> I hope you enjoy this chapter. :)

"Doctor Strange?" Peter blurted, occasionally flinching at the falling rubble surrounding them.

"No time for reunions. Hop through the portal or you'll be crushed." Strange bellowed, skipping formalities.

Without hesitation, Tony pushed Peter through the portal and followed swiftly, before strange closed their only way of getting home.

For now.

"Hey! Strange? What the hell is going on?" Tony demanded, helping Peter off of the dusty terrain.

Wait-

The orange sky encompassed them, taunted them, reminded them of their failure. The dusty floor triggering horrible memories.

Memories they would rather forget.

"Wait-" Tony was interrupted by an almost silent shriek coming from Peter, who was sitting on the floor, rocking back and forth, muttering some incoherent nonsense.

"No! No, no. I-I can't be back here. I can't. I'll disappear again. I'll be gone. Alone. I-"

"Peter, no you won't, you're here with me. You're safe. I won't let anything happen to you. Not again."

The soothing words of encouragement fell more freely than they did last time they were on this god forsaken planet. Tony felt in control.

Peter wasn't fading.

He didn't have to lie about everything being alright.

Everthing was alright.

Right?

He hadn't failed.

 _Well_ , he hadn't failed so much so that his son was literally fading into flakes of nothingness, only to be carried away by the wind to an untouchable void where-

 _No._ Tony's mind was not gonna go there.

Not when his son needed him.

After what felt like an age of constant hushing and making soothing circle motions on his hand, Peter finally eased up.

"You good?" Tony asked, helping Peter stand once more.

"Um, yeah, yeah... Sorry, dad..." Peter trailed off, unable to look Tony in the eyes.

"Sorry? Peter, you don't have to be sorry about anything. You are not going to apologise for having a PTSD episode. Ever." Tony stated, using his dad voice.

"Sorry to interrupt, but we have a major threat to the universe we need to stop and-"

"Chill, Strange. We're all good, right Peter?" Peter nodded. "Wait, did you say threat?"

"Yes. He is...that of a powerful race. Raifarion. Incredible creatures. Mental capacity that of unprecedented ability. Strength relative to unheard of levels. They are very powerful, yet peaceful."

"Apart from him?"

"Apart from him. He is strong and mixing that with the infinity stones will result in catastrophic-"

"Wait, did you just say infinity stones?" Tony asked. Strange nodded. "Like the stones that Thanos used to wipe out half the universe?" Even his name alone was enough to send a chill down Peter's spine.

"They somehow managed to re-materialise themselves, after you destroyed them."

"That's not good."

"No it is not. If he gets ahold of them, he may be even more powerful than Thanos himself."

"Well, who is he then? It's kind of important to know, I can't keep calling him _'him'."_

"Raon. He is one of the most feared soldiers on his planet, let alone his colony. He always wanted to be the biggest and the best. Then, Thanos came along and he wanted to be better than him. Better than a god."

"Thanos was _not_ a god." Tony gritted, not looking at Peter, but knowing he was shaking.

"Yeah, well doesn't mean he didn't act like one. Or try to, at least."

"Yeah, well, why are you asking us for help? Can't you just call some of your wizard friends?" Tony snarked back, sarcasm visible on every syllable.

"Because, Tony Stark." Strange said, ominously. "You are connected to the stones."

"And they are calling for you. Across the cosmos."

 


	22. What?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Strange explains why Tony holds this connection, and why they need to use it as an advantage.
> 
> An advantage against Raon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for being understanding. I'm sorry I didn't update yesterday. I tried, but my head was killing me and I had no idea what to write. 
> 
> I have figured it out now, though. I know what I'm doing.
> 
> I hope you enjoy this next chapter. :3

"Um, excuse me-What?!" Tony exclaimed, staring at Strange, as if he blamed him for the interdimentional bond with some weird space stones.

"I said, you have a connection with the-"

"Yes, I know what you said." Tony quickly interrupted the sarcastic doctor, shaking his hands wildly. "I want to know how or why. Preferably both."

"Well, when you used the stones to stop Thanos last time, they were impressed. They had never seen a human, let alone a mortal, wield such power before. They have taken interest in you, said that you are able to wield the stones to make the universe 'a better place'." Strange said, using finger quotation marks to show his annoyance at the fact that omnitiant, sentient space stones, able to control time, space, other's minds, power, life, death and literally reality itself, chose Stark over him.

"Them? And how do you know this?" Tony asked, inquisitively.

"First of all, yes 'them'. They are sentient beings, with thoughts and feelings." Strange replied, his sarcasm returning. (Did it ever leave?) He turned to Peter, who seemed to be looking as confused as ever. "Yeah, crazy right?" Peter simply nodded slowly, not really knowing what to say. "And second of all, I thought it would be wise to speak with an old race of aliens, who know a lot about the stones."

"And they would be..." Tony said, as if he was talking to a toddler.

"The Fyclapari. They are wise and very powerful. They are able to connect to the stones inter-Dimensionally."

"Then why haven't they?" Peter asks, finally gaining the courage to speak.

"Because, they need Stark to do so."

"I thought you said you talked to them." Tony adds, rolling his eyes at Strange.

"I never said I talked to them in person, that would be foolish. A human going into there territory, _alone_ ,demanding information on the most powerful things in the universe. Yes I talked to them, but only spiritually. They told me the stones told them about you. They said they were expecting a powerful ruler to come forward and claim them. At that point in time, I knew about Raon, so I wasn't sure whether they meant you or him. I said I would take you there so we could discuss the stones."

They all just stood there, not knowing what to say, as the dusty terrain blew away into the never ending void of nowhere.

"Excuse me, Mr Dr Strange, sir." Peter said in a small voice, earning him the attention of both Strange and his father. "What are we gonna do when we get there?"

"We? I'm sorry, um, Peter, was it?" Peter nodded, his confused expression never fading. "I was only meant to grab Tony. You were an unfortunate stowaway."

Tony was offended at the way Strange addressed his son. Yes, Tony didn't want him to be there either, but he couldn't just leave his son alone.

"Um, well, the kid comes with me. I'm not leaving him." A smirk found it's way onto Peter's face, as Tony wrapped his arm around him. "And what about that attack, huh? Who was that?"

"I expect it was another race of alien. News travels fast in space. Now other species know that the stones are still around and that you are connected to them in some way, they _will_ most likely attack you." Strange mumbled sarcastically, as if it was obvious.

"Yeah, well, since Peter's my son, wouldn't that make him good bargaining material for the aliens?" Peter's stomach dropped at the thought of being kidnapped to blackmail his father.

"Hmm, you're right. Well, we'll just have to take him with us then."

Peter smiled with glee, happy to be going with his father. Who knows what could happen out there.

"Ok, enough talk, let's go and negotiat with some crazy smart aliens." Stark said, earning a giggle from Peter.

"Ugh, Stark..." Strange sighed under his breath, as he opened another portal for them to walk through.

Only this time,

not all of them would walk out.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for such a short chapter. I'm tired and I just wanted to do a little filler chapter so I could write all the action next chapter.
> 
> I hope you enjoyed it (You would not BELIEVE how hard it is to come up with an alien race name.) 
> 
> :3
> 
> (And I have also just realised that the entirety of this chapter is just speech so I will add some descriptions of scenes and character actions next chapter. Sorry. :3 )


	23. Ambush

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Strange, Tony and Peter travel to Qikolae, home of the Fyclapari, to see if they can find out more about the stones, and their connection to Tony. 
> 
> But a new enemy, that has been lurking in the shadows, decides to finally make an appearance...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I swear, if I have to come up with another alien name or planet name I will lose it. It's so difficult. I had three different names before this, but they were all being used by companies. Ugh...
> 
> I hope you enjoy this new chapter! :)

The orange glow of the portal and the crackling sparks that flew off of it, were not comforting spectacles, as they wandered through it.

"Where are we?" Peter asked, his eyes going wide and mouth gaping open as he stared in shock at the pure beauty that surrounded them.

"Qikolae. The Fyclapari's home planet." Strange turned to see both Peter and Tony staring at the massive waterfall, spilling crystal clear water from the top of a rocky cliff, down into a small pond, filled with fish and plants that were bright colours and odd shapes, the likes of which neither Tony or Peter had ever seen. "Beautiful, isn't it?" 

"Uh huh, yeah, very...pretty..." Peter was mesmerised, lost in the natural beauty of this place.

"Alright, kid. Enough stopping to smell the roses." Tony took a second glance at the flower he had thought to be harmless, and realised it had teeth on every petal and glowing, swirling patterns down its stalk, and decided to lead Peter away from it, slowly. "Or whatever the hell that is."

"Yes, we need to get going if we want to speak with the council of the elders." Strange stated, pushing Tony and Peter towards a large, glass dome, statues dominating the front courtyard.

"The council of elders? How disrespectful." Peter scoffed jokingly, earning a slight chuckle from Tony.

"Yes, well, mocking the name can be seen as disrespectful as well, so I suggest you watch your mouth, unless you want to spend the night in prison cell." Strange warned, not caring to lay it down lightly, even for Peter.

"Just do what the weird wizard says, Peter." Tony mumbled to Peter, but was unsuccessful in going unnoticed by Strange, who turned and gave Tony a 'wtf is wrong with you?' kind of look, before they were met with ginormous, stained-glass doors.

"So, is this, uh, where the council meetings happen?" Peter asked nervously, playing with his jumper sleeve.

"Yes, you might say that." Strange answered, as he pushed open the big doors, opening up to a grand hall with a red, white and gold rug, leading all the way to a circle of six chairs, at the very end of the room.

As they meandered up to the centre of the circle, Tony got his first good look at a Fyclapari. Sure, he'd seen a few golden statues of them in the courtyard, but this was different. 

They were real this time.

Well, if you count a full colour, 3D, holographic projection of them ' _real_ '.

The elders sat in the chairs surrounding them, their skin a scaly green, tinted with a hint of orange and blue. They had wide, purple eyes, and their faces were long and narrow, the light reflecting off of their almost bald heads.

"What brings you to our peaceful sanctum?" A thin, wise looking alien said.

"Well, mighty elders." Strange was interrupted by a slight snicker from Peter, instantly standing up straight, eyes wide, face still, cheeks red.

"And _what_ , might I ask, is so funny?" Another alien joined the conversation, looking older, and offended, their loud voice echoing around them.

"N-nothing, sir-uh, miss-I uh, alien-" Peter blurted, struggling to find the right words to describe an old, wise alien, from the other side of the universe.

"Step forward, child." The alien from before demanded, pointing to a spot right in front of it.

Peter took a measly step forward, his stomach lurching. _What if I say something wrong? What if they lock me up? Whatifwhatifwhatifwhatif-_

"Child." They stated simply.

"Um, y-yes, your elderly-ness?" _Damn it._

"Why are you here?" It asked.

"B-because, you, um-" Peter turned to look at his dad, who looked almost as scared as he did, before turning back to the very intimidating looking alien. "We want to learn about the infinity stones."

"The infinity stones? Ah, yes, I remember now." The alien said, a look of recognition appearing on it's face, as it turned to look at Strange. "Strange, you said something about a _human_  being connected with the stones, is this it?" The alien pointed it's long, crooked, finger at Peter, looking questioningly at Strange.

"No, that is his son." Strange grabbed Tony by the shoulders and pushed him in front of the alien, next to Peter. " _This_ is the human you're after."

"Tony Stark." Tony stated.

The alien simply stared at him.

"Ok, let's cut to the chase. I am in contact with these freaky space stones, and I'd like to know _why_. Strange said you could help me?"

"That we can, Tony Stark."

"Alrighty then, what are you gonna do?"

" _They_ will not be doing anything." Came a low, sinister voice, as a large, grey creature waltzed into the room, pressing a button and watching as the elder's holograms fizzed away. "Me on the other hand? I'll be taking those stones."

"Who are you?" Peter accidentally asked, thinking out loud.

"Your saviour. Or, Raon, if you prefer." The big creature bellowed, looking prideful.

"Oh, so _you're_ this 'Raon' everyone's been talking about." Tony exclaimed, moving his arms about in an exaggerated manor.

"So you've heard of me?" Raon asked, seemingly intrigued by Tony.

"Yes. What you're capable of, what you wanna do, how you'll do it, yada yada yada..."

"Well, if you know all of this, you should know that I need the stones. So if you'd kindly like to hand them over to me-"

"Ok, first of all, why would I do that? And, second of all, I don't know _where_ the stones are, so..." Tony exclaimed, interrupting the 'great' and 'powerful' Raon.

"Stark, tell me where the stones are. Or else I will be forced to use, other methods..." Raon stated, clenching his fist, while he stared at Peter.

"No can do, sir. How about you go search in a black hole, I think I saw one fall in there a couple hours-" Tony was interrupted by a loud **thud** , coming from Strange falling to the floor, unconscious. "What? How?"

"Dart. He'll only be out for a few minutes." Raon said, as if it was a normal conversation topic.

Peter let out a high pitched screech, before hiding behind Tony.

"Can't forget about you, little guy." Raon mocked in a 'aww that's such a cute baby' voice.

"What, no. You leave him out of-" but before Tony could continue, he heard his son yelp in pain, pull the dart out of his neck, stumble a little, before his eyes rolled back and he fell to the floor in a crumpled heap.

Tony immediately rushed to Peter's side, shaking him, begging him to wake up.

"Ah, honestly, Stark, if the stones think you're worthy, they must be mad. I just said 'he'll wake up in a few minutes.' Are you deaf, old man?" Raon mocked, kicking Stark to the ground.

"No, just a pissed off dad." Tony gritted, seething, as he tapped his watch and watched as the nanotech crawled up his arm and across his body.

"Why can't we negotiate peacefully?" Raon clearly had no interst in taking _no_ for an answer, so Tony was confused why he used the word 'peacefully'.

"Because you messed with _my_ son."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Have you heard about the narration version of infinity war?
> 
> Spoilers for the movie (just in case.) and spoilers for the narration section (again, just in case.) (I haven't watched it, I just saw the tweet on the Internet.)
> 
>  
> 
> __________________________________________________________
> 
>  
> 
> 'Peter dying in Tony's arms will change Tony forever.'
> 
> Omg, I swear, marvel, if you add flashbacks to his death in avengers 4, I will lose it (again.) I mean, can it really get any worse than infinity war?
> 
>  
> 
> Yes.  
> Yes it can.
> 
>  
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this new chapter. :) 
> 
>  
> 
> only 276 days until Avengers 4...


	24. Showdown

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony saw red. This guy was trying to follow in the footsteps of the man who wiped out half of the universe, probably trying to do worse.
> 
> But none of that mattered now, because he had dared to harm his son.
> 
> And Tony wasn't happy about that.
> 
> Not one bit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I watched Spiderman: Homecoming again, (for like the 12th time.) today, and I forgot how many callbacks to past films there were.
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoy this new chapter. :)
> 
> (A strong language warning for this chapter, just in case you don't like that.)

Tony charged at the alien, anger clouding his vision as rage bubbled inside of him. He fired repulser blast after repulser blast, trying to break through the towering menace's scaly skin, but nothing was working.

"Ha, your weak 'earth tech' and futile attacks will not stop me. My enhanced healing is not even breaking a sweat." He chuckled, throwing a punch at Tony's head, sending him flying backwards.

That didn't matter, he didn't care, he was going to hurt this creature for even daring to look at his son, never mind injecting him with a weird alien drug-

_I should probably check that when we get back..._

Tony was interrupted from his thoughts by Raon grabbing a gun from off of his back, one Tony had not seen.

It was massive, nearly matching the large creature in size. It had lights emitting off of it and it made a monstrous growling noise as Raon seemingly charged it, ready to fire at Tony's head.

Tony quickly flew out of the way, firing a blast at it, watching it fly out of his hands and crash to the floor as it sizzled and sparked, but not before Raon had blasted it, the sheer force of the blast ruining his aim and causing it to shoot a pillar holding up the building.

Raon growled, silently manoeuvring around Tony's line of sight, forming a devious plan on the spot.

Dust and bits of rock started to crumble and fall from the ceiling around them, reminding Tony of the situation he and Peter were in a few hours earlier.

"Stark. Give. Me. The. Stones." Raon said slowly, his voice low and ominous. Tony realised he was holding something.

Not _something_ ,  _someone._

_Peter._

"Hey, what are you doing. Put him down. Now." Tony said, anxiety and rage taking over his body and his speech, his voice was low but it still cracked all the same.

Tony realised Peter was still unconscious, his limp body being held up by Raon's massive fist.

"Then give me the stones, or he will be forced to pay the price." Raon retaliated, glancing at Peter and then at Tony.

"I told you, I don't have them. Now give him back." Tony knew he was practically begging at this point, but he didn't care. His son was in danger.

"No can do, Stark. No stones, no deal." Raon wrapped an arm tightly around Peter, causing him to open his eyes blearily and gasp for air. Raon slightly loosened his grip, apparently not wanting to kill him.

_Yet._

"D-Dad?" Peter coughed, his voice hoarse.

"Pete, you gotta listen to me. Try and break free, try and run-" Tony was interrupted by a loud laugh coming from Raon.

"Ha, he couldn't fight without the drug in his system, what chance does he have now. I have already told you Stark, you could easily get your son back if you just give me the stones."

"And I've already told you, I don't know where they are!" Tony was growing more anxious by the minute as his gaze constantly shifted from Peter to Raon to-

Strange mumbled something as he regained consciousness, slowly, behind Tony.

"Ah, the wizard rejoins the land of the living. How was your nap?" Raon mocked, acting as if he cared.

"Wha- huh?" Strange's gaze finally landed on Tony, who was looking nervous as he stared at Peter.

"Oh, hey Strange, how nice of you to join us. Could you maybe, you know, help?" Tony asked, trying to hide his mental breakdown.

"T-Tony? What's going on?" Strange seemed confused, as he pulled the dart out of his neck, stumbling at the sudden motion, as he slowly stood up, aware of his inability, at the moment, to make drastic movements.

"Well, this asshole over here, drugged you up, got Peter and, oh yeah, this building may collapse, so try and not make too much noise." Tony walked towards Strange, slightly.

"I'm right here." Raon stated, looking sort of offended and Tony couldn't tell if he was joking or not.

"Yeah, we know, we just don't really like you-GIVEMEBACKMYSON!" Tony finally snapped, the slight bit of patience he had left had finally slipped away.

"Stark, we've been over this, give me the stones in exchange for your son, it's easy." Raon, on the other hand, was doing a good job at keeping his cool, trying to prove his dominance as Peter squirmed in his grasp, his measly attempt at breaking free was being proven useless.

"I. Don't. Have. Them." Tony was getting tired of using the same answer, and he stepped forward, eyes fixated on Peter.

As soon as he took a step, Raon pulled out a small device. A little grey box with a big blue button on it. Tony immediately stopped dead in his tracks, worried about what this device could do to Peter.

"What's that?" Strange asked, joining Tony.

"Oh, this? It's just my ticket out of here. It allows a plus one, unless I have the stones, then I'd be more than happy to let you take him. Last chance." Raon's finger hovered over the button, while his other arm held Peter, who, at this point, had given up and was just staring at Tony, fear flooding his eyes.

"I told you, I don't have them, now please, give me my son back." Tony's eyes were also rimmed with tears, but he wouldn't let them fall. He wouldn't let Peter see him cry.

"Oh well." And that was it. Raon pushed the button and he and Peter were enveloped in a bright blue light, gone in the blink of an eye.

"Dad-" was all Peter got to say, before his fearful face was gone from Tony's sight.

Tony charged forward, narrowly missing them before they were disappeared.

"Peter! No!" Tony shouted, finally letting the tears fall.

"Tony, we have to go, the building is going to collapse." Strange said, his voice shaky, as if he knew what Tony was going through.

"No, no! I can't go! I-I have to get Peter!" Tony was crying now. Tears were streaming down his face, as he stared at the spot Peter was in moments ago.

"Tony, now." Strange demanded, as dust and rocks fell more frequently.

"I-I can't..." Tony mumbled, his voice shaky.

 A loud rumble surrounded them, as the room started to shake.

"I'm sorry, Tony, but we have to go." Strange said, solemnly, opening a portal that woodshed forward, enclosing Tony, as he followed through it.

The roof above them fell to the ground with an enormous **crash** , their narrow escape was one to be thankful for, but a lot of regret came with it.

"No, I-I could've-I could-I-" Tony fell to the floor, not caring where he was.

Well, at least not until he saw the dusty terrain once more.

"Strange! Why the fuck have you brought us back here?!"

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry the fight was short, I wasn't really sure how to describe a fight scene, so I just went with that.
> 
> Oh no, Peter's been taken! What are they gonna do?
> 
> I hoped you enjoyed this new chapter. :)


	25. Excuse me?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony and Strange weren't already on good terms, the fact that Strange has taken him back to the planet where his son literally died in his arms, while his son is God knows where with a crazy alien, doesn't help the relationship.
> 
> They are also alone.  
> On a distant planet.  
> Uh oh.  
> Please don't kill eachother.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had to think about what I was gonna write for the this chapter. I wrote some, got rid of it cause I didn't like it, and wrote this. It took a lot of time, but I'm true to my word and a new chapter will be out later, once I've finished writing it.
> 
> Sorry if there is a massive delay, I promised though.  
> I will stay true to my PROMISE!!! :)
> 
> Hope you enjoy. :)
> 
> (Also a strong language warning, just in case you don't like that sort of stuff.)

"Excuse me, I just saved your ass!" Strange retaliated, unable to see why Tony was reacting this way.

"Thanks, but I'd rather be a pancake right now than have to deal with your shit." Tony mumbled.

"I could easily take you back there. I could blame you and you'd have to deal with the consequences." Strange exclaimed, sounding like a moody toddler.

"What consequences?!" Tony shouted, turning to Strange with a look of complete and utter rage on his face.

"Oh, I don't know, maybe consequences for THE BUILDING WE JUST DESTROYED!"

"Strange!" Tony shouted, gaining the attention of the angry wizard. "What are we doing?" Strange looked lost for words.

"I-I don't know." Strange said, his angry tone had not died down.

"Well, I do. We're over here, acting like five year olds, while my son is with some crazy alien tyrant, God knows where." Tony walked away from Strange, sitting on the dusty floor. 

Strange just stood there, unable to give the slightest bit of sympathy to the man who had annoyed him _so_ much, in such a short amount of time. (The friend of the year award goes to...)

"I'm a shit father." Tony muttered, burying his head in his hands.

"Listen, Tony. We can get him back-"

"How?" Tony stated, standing up. "How? Tell me how in the world are we supposed to get him back? We don't even know where he is!" Tony was hysterical.

"Well, do you have a DNA sample of him? Some hair?" Strange asked, as if it was normal.

"Probably, he likes to cuddle my jacket when we watch movies. Wait, why?" Tony asked, as he pulled a hair, he believed to be Peter's, off of his jacket. _I_ _t's curly and brown, it's not gonna be yours, Stark._

"Thank you." Strange replied, grabbing the hair and proceeding to do some magic mumbo-jumbo with it.

Tony just stood there, in shock and curiosity.

Once Strange had finished his magic trick, he spiralled the glowing hair into a portal, opening to a dark cliff, surrounded by navy skies.

Through it he could see a figure, holding a smaller shadow.

Tony could tell that big mop of hair anywhere.

And he waisted no time running towards it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the short chapter, but the new one should be up in a short while, I just need to write it first.
> 
> I hope you spotted the call back to Thor: Ragnarock. I couldn't think of another way to find him, and Strange has already done that before, so...
> 
> I hope you enjoyed the new chapter! :)


	26. Save me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter doesn't know what to do. He's alone with this scary alien, and he has no idea where his dad is. Or where he is, for that matter.
> 
> What can he do?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoy the double chapters. I will be posting another chapter tomorrow, so the schedule isn't ruined.  
> I hope you enjoy this chapter. It is happening at the same time Tony Stark and Stephen Strange are having their conversation.
> 
> Enjoy! :)

Peter didn't remember passing out, but he remembers waking up. He felt sluggish and took his time opening his eyes.

He regretted opening them, though.

When he finally managed to pry his eyes open, he was met with a dark navy sky hanging ominously above him. He looked down to see a large cliff, unable to see how far it went. In fact, he couldn't see much of anything. His view was of a cliff and-

Raon.

Peter tried to slip away, but found himself trapped. Large chains wrapped around his arms and kept him leaning against a large rock.

"Ahh, you're awake." Raon said, seemingly happy as he leaned in closer to Peter's face.

Peter didn't reply. He didn't want to reply. What could he do, though. He had all of the power, while Peter was trapped. Stuck.

"What's the matter, earth feline got your tongue?"

Peter simply shook his head, scared senseless of the massive figure in front of him.

"We won't get anywhere unless you talk to me." Raon moved Peter's face, making them lock eyes.

"Fine. Go suck a duck." Peter knew Tony didn't condone him using 'language' so he went for the next best thing.

"I am not familiar with your petty earth insults. If you are trying to intimidate me, you are doing an awful job." Raon practically threw Peter's head away, like a piece of trash.

Peter didn't want to annoy him, but he didn't want to seem weak, so, he tried talking, after all, it's what he did best.

"So, what are you planning on doing, exactly?" Hey, go big or go home.

"Do you actually think I would tell _you_ my plans?" Raon laughed.

"Well, I'm not exactly in a position to go and gossip. Why not get some things of your chest?" 

"You are right. Well, as you know, Thanos was...powerful, to say the least." A look of anguish fell over Peter's face. "I want to do better, be better. I can be twice the hero Thanos was, and I shall prove it." Raon said, pridefully. He really like bragging.

"He wasn't a hero, and neither are you. Your just a sick alien, who thinks he's better than everybody else, when in reality, you're nothing more than a sad little creature, too scared of failure and wanting anyone and everyone to adore him, which I can't see happening, I mean, you're repulsive-" Peter was caught off guard by a hand wrapping around his throat, earning the owner a cough from Peter, as he struggled to get air into his lungs.

"You insignificant little-" Raon seemed to be calming himself, as an evil smile spread all over his face. "I expect your precious father will be here soon, why not give him a show."

Raon yanked Peter's body away from the chains, smiling as they snapped like a tooth pick. Raon carried Peter, who was still gasping for air, towards the edge of the cliff.

Peter's eyes widened at the view beneath him, a seemingly endless drop awaited him if he did one thing wrong, and that was a risk he was not willing to take.

As if on cue, a swirling portal appeared, and almost instantaneously, Tony charged from it, his eyes fixated on Peter.

"Peter!" Tony exclaimed, most definitely petrified.

"Hello, Stark." Raon greeted, turning back to Peter, who's lips had turned blue and face pale.

Peter took one last look at his dad, before the darkness consumed him and he fell limp.

Raon loosened his grip, and placed Peter in his large hand.

"Give him back. Now." Tony was beyond mad at this point, he was furious.

"Let's do a little experiment, shall we?" Raon took one glance at Peter before turning his attention back to Tony. "I wonder if he can fly." 

And with that, Raon threw him off of the cliff.

Tony had never gotten into his Ironman suit faster.

 


	27. A little more time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's a race against time as Tony rushes to get to Peter before he falls to his doom.
> 
> If only he had a little more time...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoy this new chapter. :)
> 
> Can you guess what's gonna happen?

His bleeding edge armour encased him as he ran towards the cliff and jumped. There were no two ways about it. He felt the rush of air on his face before the suit of armour finally sealed around it in one high tech **swoosh**.

He knew he was injured after the fight with Raon, but he didn't care. Peter was falling through the air, unconscious, unable to stop himself from hitting the floor.

But Tony wasn't.

He was not going to make the same mistake he made with Rhodey. He was not going to let someone else close to him get hurt, or worse. _Please don't die, please don't die, please don't die._

Suddenly, Peter's eyes snapped open and he tossed and turned in the air, obviously scared shitless. It was such a long way down, but time was running out. He had been too slow. He wasn't gonna make it.

 _C'mon, can't this suit go any faster?_ Tony knew that if he asked for any more power, he would fly straight into the ground, Peter underneath him, crushed by the armour. He couldn't do that. No, no, what else could he do?

 _Please, oh shit, if there is a god, don't let my son die. Please._ Tony was at wits end, this fall seeming to go on forever.

Tony realised that it was too late. He saw Peter moments away from smashing into the ground. Peter had closed his eyes, accepting his fate. 

_Oh god, no. If only I had a little more time..._

Suddenly, Peter's body started to slow down. He wasn't plummeting to his death, he was gracefully falling. The world warped into some green fun house. Everything was swirly and wurly and, quite frankly, Tony felt sick to his stomach. In a sudden flash of light, Tony felt like he was falling. He couldn't see Peter. He couldn't see anything. Only the blinding white light that surrounded him.

As if in an instant, he found himself back in a situation that was all too similar. Raon holding an unconscious Peter above the cliff as he and Strange watched helplessly.

"What the..." Tony mumbled, stumbling backwards.

"Tony?" Strange asked, looking concerned, while maintaining his fighting stance, the orange glowing runes still reflecting off of his hands.

Tony realised he had something in his hand and when he opened his fist to look at it, he could only gasp in shock.

Raon smiled gleefully as he dropped Peter on the ground, who lay there, unmoving.

"See, what I tell you?" Raon stated, striding towards Tony and Strange. "Mr 'I don't know where the stones are'."

Tony didn't have a witty comeback this time. He didn't know what to say. He was still trying to gather his thoughts after trying to stop his son from smashing into the ground. 

"Oh, like father like son, eh?" Raon was clearly amused by the whole situation. "Your son was silent too. Until I hit a soft spot."

That was enough to get Tony to talk.

"What did you say to him?" Tony was already angry about the whole kidnapping thing, so the fact he had said something that had upset his kid sent him over the edge.

"Oh, nothing. Just talked about his ol' pal, Thanos. That doesn't matter. What _does_ matter, is that nice little stone you've got in your hand. If you'd kindly like to give it to me, along with the rest of them, you'll never have to see me again." Raon chuckled, practically radiating excitement. 

Tony didn't know how or what he did, but the same familiar green glow surrounded him and the whole world stopped.

Strange was stood still, the sparks of the magical runes frozen in mid air. Raon towered over him, his face stopped in it's most obviously evil moment; he was grinning like the Grinch.

Tony then realised Peter was still there. He had almost forgot, what with the magic and alien threat talking to him. When he looked at Peter, he noticed he was waking up. His eyes were slightly open as he leant on his arms. Tony rushed over to him, standing still as he pondered whether he could touch him or not without causing some massive space-time-continuum-thingy. _Fuck it, I do what I want._

Tony knelt down and stared at Peter, just glad that he was no longer falling to his doom. As soon as he touched Peter's arm there was a flash of light and Peter blinked back into recognition.

"Huh, wha-I? How did you get over here?" He slurred, still clearly dazed from the oxygen deprivation and the (what he believed to be) teleportation of his father.

"Long story short, Pete. I got the time stone after I tried to stop you from falling off a cliff in the future, which would technically be the past at this point, but anyway, we are now frozen in time." Tony explained.

Peter practically jumped up off the floor, going even more paler than before.

"You _can_ un-freeze time, right?" Peter asked, nervously.

"I think so, but how about we do it over there. One, we can scare the shit outta Strange and Raon, and two, we can escape easier." Tony said, helping Peter walk without swaying.

When they reached Strange, Peter looked even paler than before, and Tony couldn't tell whether it was the alien drug that was still obviously in his system, or the fact he went without oxygen for about a minute and a half.

Peter gave Tony a look of 'I believe in you, but please don't have me stuck in a time-limbo forever' as Tony held Peter's shoulder while he raised his hand into his line of sight.

The green stone sat in his hand, and with one thought, the bright light consumed them once more and they were met with startled faces from Raon and Strange.

Peter stumbled forward slightly, and if Tony weren't holding him, he would've face planted the floor. 

"How? Oh, so you already know how to use it, huh?" Raon seemed skeptical, but he kept his dominant stance nonetheless.

"Yes I do. How about you back off and STRANGEGETUSOUTOFHERE!!!" He screamed, motioning for Strange to open a portal for them to escape out of.

"Not so fast you insects." Raon stated angrily, stepping forward.

"I'm not an insect, I'm an arachnid!" Peter exclaimed, delivering a kick to Raon's face that sent him stumbbling backwards.

"Nice work, kid." Tony praised, practically carrying Peter through the shaky portal that Strange was obviously struggling to keep open.

They all rushed through the portal before it disappeared, crashing to the ground, tiredness taking over them.

"Thanks...dad..." Peter mumbled, before he passed out in his dad's arms.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed this chapter! 
> 
> Thank you for reading! :)


	28. Malfunctions in space

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony was SOOOO out of his depth. Peter's infected with some weird alien drug that seems to be infecting Strange too. The sentient stones notice his struggle and decide to give him a gift.
> 
> Tony only wishes they'd given him the reciet so he could return it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, sorry I haven't updated in forever, but I feel soooo much better now. Thank you for understanding and I hope you enjoy this new chapter!
> 
> :)

"Peter?" Tony started shaking him, worried about his dangerously high temperature. "Peter!" 

Peter just lay there, his limp body only being held up by Tony's shaking hands.

Strange sat to the side of Tony, his breathing was heavy and he looked to be just as hot as Peter. He had sweat dripping down his forehead, but he seemed to be doing alright.

"He's just unconscious. His brain was without oxygen for a while and mixing that with this weird alien drug must have drained his energy." Strange said, trying to get up but immediately falling back to the ground again.

"Strange? Are you ok?" Tony was only concerned because if Raon showed up again, he would be alone, defending two injured superheroes _and_ an infinity stone.

"I'm...fine." Strange managed to mumble, as he slowly stood on his shaky legs.

Peter had sweat dripping down his head, he would occasionally scrunch his face up, allowing Tony to see how red his face was.

Peter started to mumble stuff incoherently and his eyes snapped open, looking glassy and unseeing.

"Pete?" Tony asked, holding Peter's shoulder so he could sit up.

"I-I don't-I don't wan' it..." Peter whispered, leaning into Tony's touch.

"Don't want what?" Tony was staring at Peter's eyes, which would drift from side to side, obviously looking for something that wasn't there.

"N-no...I-I...don' hurt...Tony..." Peter was rambling before his eyes rolled back and his body fell limp once more.

"Oh great..." Tony grumbled, laying Peter down on the now-all-too-familiar dusty terrain.

"Strange?" Tony ripped Strange from his racing thoughts. He turned almost instantly, his face pale and sweaty. "Any ideas?"

"Well, I don't _really_ know how to cure this, let alone what it is, but I may have some stuff in the sanctum that could help. If I go back and get it, I may be able to find a cure."

"Wait, why can't we just all go there together?" Tony said, grabbing Strange's arm before he could create a portal back to earth.

"Because, the only reason I brought you here was so no one could track you. They would never think you'd come here. They'll be looking for you. I must go alone." Strange pulled his arm back, stumbling a little.

"'They'? Who's 'they'?" 

"Raon. Other deadly alien races. They'll want you or the stone." Strange started to open a portal before turning back to Tony and giving him an apologetic look. "I'll only be gone for a little while." And with that, he was gone.

Tony turned back to see Peter thrashing around, mumbling and sweating, trying to fight something that wasn't there.

_Ugh, I wish I never brought him here. I could have sent him home, then he wouldn't be in this mess. I wish he was back to being a kid, I wish he was innocent and didn't have to go around fighting bad guys all the time._

Tony saw a familiar green light emit from the stone he held in his hand. It enveloped him, washing away the sight of Titan and Peter.

Tony doesn't remember closing his eyes, but he opens them nonetheless. He sees white, fog laying at his feet. _I'm dead._

"You are not dead." A voice said, echoing around him. It had layers, a man, a woman, old, young. It was everything. It sounded powerful.

"Huh? Who are you?" Tony honestly felt a little weird just talking to nothing like that.

" _We_ are the infinity stones. We have heard your pleas, and bestowed to you a gift, Tony Stark. For all of the good you have done to the universe."

"Um...thank you?" Tony hesitated, realising these 'stones' had powers over literally _everything_ , so...what had they done?

"Where am I?" Tony finally asked the thing that had been bothering him the most.

" _We_ are in your subconscious." 

"You mean I'm asleep?!" Tony exclaimed, running a hand through his hair. _Shit. Shit, shit, shit. I've left Peter all alone._

"Can I wake up now. Like, _right_ now?" Tony asked, his voice laced with anxiety.

"As you wish, Tony Stark. _We_ hope you enjoy your gift." Everything around him started to fade. The voice was shaky and seemed to warp into weird tones.

The once white background was turning darker and darker. Tony felt like he was falling...

Falling...

                                                 Falling...

                                                                                                Falling...

Tony sat up like a rocket. His heart was beating a mile a minute and his eyes blearily searched his surroundings. _Ok, I'm awake. I'm awake..._ Tony placed his hand down to the spot where Peter was, only, he wasn't there.

It was like an alarm going off in his head. _Where'sPeterwhere'sPeterwhere'sPeter?!?!_

Tony stood up, dizzily, and started searching in the rubble and debris, calling his son's name.

"Peter! Peter! Please, if you can hear me-" Tony was interrupted by a giggle he recognised.

It was high pitched and squeaky, it still sounded like his, but there was _no way_ that was Peter.

"Daddy!" Peter exclaimed, jumping from behind Tony, crouching down and stretching his arms out to look like a monster.

Tony stood there. Utterly shocked and lost for words, his wide eyes and shaky hands doing all the talking.

There, in front of him, was his son.

Only, he was tiny.

And a toddler.

"PETER?!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uh oh. The stones may have taken Tony's wish a bit too literally.
> 
> What is he gonna do?
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this new chapter! I'm not really sure about this chapter, but any suggestions are welcome! :)


	29. Misunderstandings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony was in shock. His kid. HIS 15 year old KID, was now a babbling 3 year old. Apparently, he still remembered everything, considering he knew who Tony was. A 15 year old Peter Parker trapped in a 3 year olds body.
> 
> Oh no...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for being patient. I'm sorry that I've been missing days but I was really ill. The worst of it is gone now (hopefully) and I should be updating more frequently from now on! :)
> 
> This chapter was really fun to write and I hope you enjoy it!
> 
> As always, thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy this new chapter. :)

Tony was shocked. His mouth was hanging open and his eyes were wide and followed Peter's every clumsy movement. Tony's brow furrowed as he tried to deduce how in hell the infinity stones thought turning Peter into a- _how old is he? Ugh, who cares, Stark. Just think about fixing him!_ \- toddler was a good 'gift'. It was beyond him.

Peter, bless his soul, was oblivious to his father's racing thoughts. He just continued to babble nonsense as he stumbled around, trying to work his tiny body. _Ok, so I'm small now. Haha, I'm small, like a spider. Spider baby!_

Peter, normally, wasn't very good at internalising his thoughts, but his 3 year old self-control was having none of it and he shouted to the heavens "SPIDER-BABY!" scaring the shit out of Tony.

Tony stumbled back, the sudden outburst from Peter interrupting his scattered thoughts.

"Ok, ok. My son is a toddler. Ookaay, my _15 year old_ son is a toddler." Tony tried to reassure himself as he picked up the squirming tiny superpowered arachnid.

Tony wasn't very good with kids before he met Peter. You can thank Howard for that one. Starks were _not_ supposed to get close to _anyone_. People get close to you and then they let you down. He wasn't gonna give anyone that power over him. But then he met Pepper. She was the first person he actually gave a shit about, besides his mother, and he couldn't protect her so what chance had he got with the sassy red head? She nearly _died_ , the one thing he'd tried _so_ hard to stop, nearly happened. Still, she let him and his crazy suits of titanium alloy into her life, and he couldn't be happier. Then there was Rhodey, now paralysed because he and his 'friend' got into a little argument. But Peter. Peter was different. Peter was a kid. _His kid._ At first, yeah he felt responsible for the impulsive, reckless, clumsy, genius. But, as time went by, he felt close to the little guy. Then, before he knew it, Titan happened. Peter had died in his arms. He had begged for him to stop it, to _save_ him, but he couldn't. He'd failed him. He's what drove him to fight again. He's what drove him to go back in time, collect all of the infinity stones and stop Thanos. Then, everything with May and the custody. How could he _not_ have taken him in? He had no family, much like Tony, and Tony felt actual love for him. Like, parental love. But, of course, the universe couldn't let him go another goddam minute without fighting some big evil threat that wanted to destroy the universe. Peter was better off without Tony...

"No he is not." The familiar voice from the plain of his subconscious had returned. The infinity stones were... _talking_ to him.

Again.

_When did my life get so weird?_

"What do you mean? He's literally two."

"He is actually three in earth years." 

"Ok, glad that we've cleared that up-WHY IS HE THREE?!" Tony bellowed to the sky.

Peter tugged at Tony's shirt and gave him a weird look. "Daddy, who you talking to?" Peter's tiny hand pointed to the sky and Tony realised he must look insane.

"Um, no one, buddy. I'm just talking to the infinity stones." Hey, at least he was honest.

"Oh, ok." Peter beamed, turning his attention back to his dainty hands.

"If you're quite finished." The stones seemed to pause, waiting for a response from Tony. He didn't know if they could see him or not, so he simply nodded his head and hummed in acknowledgment, trying to make it sound as sarcastic and bitter as possible. "We turned him into an earthling toddler because you asked."

Tony was astounded. Had he _really_ asked for that? He must have hit his head at some point because he had no recollection of this.

"I'm sorry, am I missing something here? Because I quite clearly remember _never_ asking for my child to be turnied into a two-"

"Three." Peter interrupted, not looking up to see Tony's surprised face. Tony had to do a double take and stop himself from laughing because no matter how old Peter is, he has no issue with counting out people on their mistakes. _Especially_ about his age _._

" _Three_ year old toddler."

"We _quite clearly_ remember you wishing he was innocent and a 'kid again'."

Tony let out a sigh, remembering his 'wish'. He didn't mean it like that, he only wanted Peter to not have to fight anymore, not be a freaking toddler. He was going to have to be more careful about what he wished would happen in the future. Wouldn't wanna punch Steve Rogers in his _perfect teeth_ , now would we?

"Ok then, switch him back." Tony said sternly, looking at his son who, by some miracle, seemed to be entranced by his small fingers, opening and closing his fist again and again and again. 

"We're afraid it's not that simple. The reason only one of us is in your possession is because when Thanos used us all at once, it caused a disruption in the universe. It rendered us weakened, only to be used a second time by you. We were so weak that it has taken us all this time to rematerialise. We need more time to grow stronger. If you are that unhappy with your gift, we will swap it. When our power is restored."

Tony used his free hand to rub his temple. God, this stress was enough to give him 7 migraines. "So, you're telling me, I have to watch a 3 year old kid, while I have dozens of aliens after me, until you can muster up enough power to change him back?"

"Yes, that is what we have just said." 

"Great. Just great." Tony all but shouted, earning him a sudden jerk from Peter.

"What is?" Peter's small voice still warmed Tony's heart, the way it squeaked at times made it almost forgivable for turning him into a freaking toddler.

"Nothing, buddy. It's fine." Tony smiled at Peter, putting him down onto the ground. Peter bounced happily when he touched the dusty floor.

"We will be watching you, Tony Stark." The stones voices faded out, seeming to go back into whatever mini pocket dimension they were inhabiting.

Tony slipped the Time stone into his pocket and turned around to see Peter lifting up a big peice of debris, high above his head.

"Woah, woah, woah! Easy, kid. Watch what you're doing." Tony shrieked as he lunged forward, grabbing the chunk of metal but immediately dropping it to the ground. _Even as a toddler, he's still stronger than me._

"Are you mad at me 'cause I'm small now?" Peter mumbled quietly, playing with his jumper sleeve. _They even shrunk the clothes. How thoughtful._

"Now? What do you mean now?" Tony wanted to say _'no, of course not, buddy.'_ but his thoughts about _why_ and _how_ Peter knew about being any different tumbled out of his mouth before he could say otherwise.

"I-I was big before." Peter reached his arm up high, earning an almost silent 'awww' from Tony. "But then I got turned small while you were asleep. I'm not Spiderman anymore." Peter seemed almost sad at that remark, his bottom lip trembling slightly.

"No, I'm not mad at you, Peter. I don't care if you're big or small, you're still my kid. Yeah, you're not Spiderman, but you're still _Spiderman._ " Peter tilted his head, face scrunching up in confusion. "I mean, you may not be all big and tough, but you still got all the cool powers and that cute little heart that loves everyone. Nobody can take that away from you." 

Peter smiled, happy with the response. He struck a superhero pose and pretended to fire webs at pieces of metal surrounding them.

Tony didn't know what to do. He was alone with a toddler on a dusty dead planet, waiting for-

At that moment in time, a sparkling portal appeared in front of them, and a limping figure emerged from it, carrying all sorts of medical supplies, that were immediately dropped onto the floor.

"What the heck is going on?"

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was probably the longest chapter I have ever done. I hope you enjoyed it, I enjoyed writing it.
> 
> It was really fun to write. I love Tony's and Peter's relationship in the movies and I wanted to bring that to my story, build upon it and then have all these obstacles in the way.
> 
> I can't wait to write the next chapter. I hope you enjoyed this one, though.
> 
> Thanks for reading! :)


	30. Small Peter, big problems

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter's having a hard time adjusting to being three. Strange makes a smart inquiry about the situation, but before they can plan their next move, it all goes to shit.
> 
> Who wants to abduct them this time?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was...interesting to write. I hope you enjoy it. I know I'm updating earlier than I normally do, but I really wanted to write again. I hope you like the new chapter! :)

"Mr Dr Strangee!" Peter cheered, racing over to a gob smacked strange and hugging his leg.

"Tony. Would you like to tell me why there is a small child attached to my leg?" Strange gritted, trying to stay calm.

"Well, that 'small child' is Peter."

" _This_ is Peter?" Strange exclaimed, pointing to Peter who simply waved in return. "Tony, what did you do?"

"Nothing! The stones, on the other hand, decided I deserved a 'gift'. That 'gift' being turning my teenage son into a three year old toddler. He can't even walk properly!" Tony finally let out his anger, that he hadn't realised he'd been holding in.

That, however, did not put a smile on Peter's face. Tony always thought Peter was the type of child who would be an absolute angel. Turned out, he was wrong.

"I CAN WALK! I'M A BIG BOY!" Peter all but shouted, stomping his feet on the floor, but slipping and crashing down to the ground with a loud **Thud**. He then proceeded to cry.

And cry.

And cry.

And Tony didn't know how to stop it.

He tried carrying him, he tried rocking him, he tried talking to him, but Peter was having none of it.

"Aww, come on, Pete. If you were really a big boy, you wouldn't be crying." Tony tried using Peter's own words against him, but that just made everything worse.

Peter pushed himself out of his father's arms and ran. He ran and he ran and he ran. Well, he stumbled and fell a couple of times but he still ran faster than any normal toddler.

"Peter!" Tony shouted, chasing after the small boy.

But Peter was fast. He also, worryingly, had superpowers. Superpowers that were accustomed to being used by a fifteen year old boy, but with Peter being a toddler, Tony can't imagine what he must be going through. His Spidey sense must be screaming at him, his strength must be off the charts and he's so fast that Tony couldn't keep up with him.

In fact, Tony had lost him.

"Oh my god, Peter, please come out. I can't lose you." Tony shouted, twisting in a circle, looking everywhere for that big mop of curly hair.

Tony was about to give up and go back to Strange, when he heard a sniffle. A little sniffle and then some sobs. They were coming from inside what looked to be an old ship. It was crushed and the area the sounds were coming from seemed only accessible by a small hole.

Tony managed to fit his head inside and was greeted by an awful sight.

Peter sat there, rocking back and forth, mumbling to himself.

"I no' small, I big. I no' want to be small no more. Why can't I be big 'gain?" Peter was speaking so fast his mouth couldn't keep up. He kept stumbling on words that were, for a fifteen year old boy, easy to say.

"Hey, Pete. You ok?"

Peter didn't seem to notice Tony, he just continued to rock back and forth, tears streaming down his face. "Why can I no' speak pro'erly? I can' say big words or small words!"

Peter was beginning to get frustrated; he began pulling at his hair with his hands and banging his face on his legs.

"Hey, hey. Peter, no. Come on, let's go back to Strange." Tony tried to fit more of his body in the debris, but only managed his head and one arm.

"I dumb. I dumb. Big Peter no' dumb. I wan' be big 'gain." Peter sobbed, pulling his hair harder than before.

Tony surged forward, grabbing Peter's hands before he could do anymore damage. "No, buddy, you are not dumb. You're smart. So smart. You just can't work this body. It's small, but you're used to big Peter. You're trying to do things too fast, just speak slower, it might be easier then."

Peter took a deep breath and chose his words carefully, speaking slower and clearer than before. "Do you not wan' me no more?" Peter looked up at Tony and Tony could see his puffy eyes. He had tears still falling down his face like a river, and his bottom lip still wobbled.

"What? No, buddy, of course I want you. You're my Peter. I love you so much." Tony said, pulling Peter out of the debris and wrapping him up in a big hug.

"I love you too, daddy." Peter mumbled, nestling his head into to Tony's neck and wrapping his small hand around his father's shoulders.

Tony carried Peter back to Strange, who appeared to have made a little...thing. Tony had no idea _what_ it was. There was a purple fire, crackling behind him. He had herbs and all sorts of wizard-y things laid out in front of him. He seemed to be mixing something in a small, wooden cup.

"Ah, so you found him." Strange said, before breaking out into a fit of coughs.

Peter blushed slightly and hid his head away from Strange's view. "Yes, I found him. What are you doing?" Tony asked, sitting Peter down on his lap, while he sat on the planet's dusty floor.

"Well, while you two played hide and seek, I sat here making a cure for the alien drug." Strange said, showing them the metallic-looking purple liquid.

"I shall save some for Peter, because, if my hypothesis is correct, when he is returned to normal, he should still have the drug in his system. The stones will have returned him to his old body, while he still retained all of his memories. The difference is, he has the instincts of a three year old-crying, giggling, tantrums-you name it. He will behave like a toddler, but he still knows who we are. Fascinating." 

"Hey, don't turn my son into some weird, wizard-science experiment." Tony said, grabbing Peter and pulling him closer to his chest.

"I'm not saying we should experiment on him, I'm just saying it's intriguing." Strange tapped Peter's shoulder to gain his attention. "Hey Peter, what's forty eight multiplied by sixty two?"

"Two fousand nime 'undwed and sebenty six. Hehe, funny cape." Peter said, as if it was basic maths, before playing with the red peice of cloth, hanging from Strange's shoulders.

"See? And, Peter, it's a cloak." Strange replied, before drinking half of the purple liquid and putting the other half into a small glass container and screwing the lid on.

"Ok, ok, I'll admit, that's incredible, not to mention he's even more adorable than before, but how are we supposed to protect ourselves from aliens with a three year old kid in the way?" Peter looked up and gave Tony a look that said 'excuse me?' with so much sass, even Pepper would be jealous. "Sorry, Pete."

"Well, we'll just have to be more careful-" Strange was cut off by a large explosion that sent everyone flying.

"Oof!" Tony exclaimed, holding Peter tight to his chest as they landed on the ground.

Tony couldn't see Strange, but he could see that the strength of the blast was enough to send them flying a couple feet.

"Peter, are you ok?" Tony scrambled, worried about his infant son's safety.

Peter nodded weakly, gripping tightly to Tony's chest and shaking with fear.

Before Tony could get up and look for Strange, they were tangled up in a net.

"Hey! What the-" Tony was cut off by a strong, electrical current, surging through his body. He let off a shaky scream and his ears were flooded with his son's pain-filled screams, as well.

They soon died off and Tony realised Peter had passed out. Tony didn't have that luxury. He could feel every inch of his body ignite with pain, the electricity coursing through his bones. He drifted in and out of consciousness.

He saw him and his son being dragged along the dusty floor...

Darkness...

He saw a fuzzy figure carrying another net, seemingly carrying Strange...

Darkness...

He saw a familiar ship, floating above the ground, waiting to take them away...

Darkness...

This time, the darkness was permanent. But, before he drifted into a dreamless state of unconsciousness, he thought to himself.

"Who the hell is it this time?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter made me feel sad at times. Poor Peter, I'm sorry. I wonder who it is?
> 
> Leave any guesses to who it might be in the comments and tell me what you thought about the chapter. Any positive suggestions welcome. :)
> 
> Thank you so much for reading, I hope you enjoyed it. :)


	31. Empty pleas, broken promises

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony's rest is the absolute opposite of dreamless. A recurring nightmare, he thought was under control, decides to resurface, bringing back fears and doubts from the past.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm going on holiday/vacation tomorrow, so updates might be all over the place. I'll try and stay consistent with updates, but I hope you'll understand if I don't have the time to write.
> 
> I'm sorry it's such a short chapter, but it's very sad. I actually cried writing this. Poor Peter...  
> AND IT'S HIS BIRTHDAY TODAY!!! :( :( :( 
> 
> I hope you enjoy this new chapter! :D

Tony's sleep was anything but. The once blissful state of floating around his foggy mind was interrupted by the crashing of the sky that appeared above him.

Only, the sky was orange.

The floor was covered in debris and Tony was all alone, blood pouring from his wound, a river of crimson red flowing down his left side.

But then, he wasn't alone.

He felt a small, yet strong, arm pull him up, hold him steady as he tried to stop the blood. 

_Peter._

Only, there wasn't anymore blood to stop. He was fine. 

He released his side from his tight grasp and turned to look at Peter, who had left his company. He was now facing away from him, looking down at his hands.

"Hey, Pete. You alright?" Tony asked, stretching his arm forward to turn Peter to face him.

What he saw was his worst nightmare. His greatest fear.

Peter's face was practically crumbling away, the flakes of ash flowing off of his head as his teary eyes met Tony's.

"Mr Stark?" Tony knew what was about to happen, but he didn't want to believe it. _No. No, not him. Please, anyone but him._ "I don't feel so good."

Peter's hand shook a mile a minute as he steadied himself, trying not to sway side to side.

Tony wanted to say a million words but all he could manage was "You're alright."

"I don't-I don't know what's happening." Peter explained, his voice breaking. "I don't-can you save me?" He mumbled as he fell into Tony's arms.

Tony's heart was racing. The dreaded words he hated so much were being used again. He just held his son. Held him as he crumbled away. Crumbled away like before, and he was powerless to stop it.

Just when Tony thought it couldn't get any worse, his heart was shattered by Peter's shaky voice, pleading hopless cries. "I don't wanna go, I don't wanna go. Stark, please, please, I don't wanna go, I don't wanna go." Peter's tears fell like bullets as his legs disappeared beneath him, causing him and Tony to fall to the floor.

Tony cradled his son's head, grasping his shoulder as if the contact could keep him from leaving him.

Tony braced himself for the words he hated most. He hated that Peter thought he needed to apologise to him, that he thought it was his fault that he was dying, but Peter's voice was hoarse, deep and angry. Angry at Tony.

"Why didn't you save me?" Peter spat at Tony as the dust crawled up his arm. "You failed me, and now I'm dead. I'm dead and it's all your fault."

Tony was absolutely drenched with guilt. His words were true. Tony had failed, he'd failed his son and now he was suffering. He could have done something, tried harder, fought better, but he didn't and now he was gone.

Before death took his son away, Peter managed to bite out his final words.

"I thought you loved me, dad..." 

Before Tony could correct him, he faded away into the endless oblivion that would consume his fear and turn his life into a waking nightmare. Peter's pleas, along with him, were simply dust in the wind.

And Tony wished it was him instead.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That was...sad...
> 
> I hope you enjoyed the chapter, it was really sad to write. I want to go into Tony's guilt about the whole 'Titan' thing, that, hopefully, won't be that bad in avengers 4, but with what they made us watch in Infinity War, I wouldn't put it past them.
> 
> Happy birthday Peter Parker, I hope you're having a lovely party.
> 
> Wherever you are...
> 
> WHY MARVEL, WHY????
> 
> Sorry, wow, I kind of exploded there.
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the chapter! :)


	32. Regret

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony wakes up in an unfamiliar environment. It's fine. It was just a dream. He tries to focus, but his mind is racing. PeterPeterPeterPeterPeter. Where's Peter? He's gotta find Peter, make sure he's safe, tell him he loves him.
> 
> But first, he's gotta find out where he is.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry that I haven't updated in like forever. I'm on holiday and I have had an insane amount of writers block. Nothing I've written makes sense and it doesn't flow right, but! I have overcome it and now I have written a new chapter! I hope you enjoy it. :)

Tony startled awake, falling to the floor, the cool metal colliding with his burning forehead. Tony looked around the odd looking room, assessing his situation. The door had a keypad next to it, so he guessed that he wasn't a prisoner. The walls were the same metal as the floor. A single light flickered on the ceiling as Tony stood up, stumbling slightly, reaching out for the bed before he collided with the floor. 

_Wait a minute-where's Peter?_

All at once, Tony went into full on 'dad mode'. He scrambled to the door and fumbled with the keypad, instantly racing out and running into-

"Stark! Hey, um, just chill out for a minute." the owner of the voice said, holding Tony's shaking figure by the shoulders.

"Peter. Peter. I-I gotta-gotta find Peter." Tony didn't think to stop and look at the person holding his arms, he didn't care about that now. He needed to find Peter.

"Jeeze, Tony. Calm down." Tony's head flew up. He knew that voice. He never thought he'd hear it again.

"Quill?" 

"In the flesh." Quill smiled reassuringly, releasing Tony's shoulders and gesturing to himself. "Um, sorry about kidnapping you and everything. Thought you were an alien threat. There's a _big_ bounty on your name."

"Huh? Oh, yeah, um that's fine. Where's Peter?" Tony scanned the ship frantically, searching for any sign of his son.

"Oh, little-little Pete? He's just with Gamora on the upper deck." Quill added, pointing towards the ladder.

_Little-little Pete? Oh yeah, still a toddler. Great._

Tony pushed past Quill and ran towards the ladder, quickly climbing up and coming face-to-face with an adorable three year old Peter looking out of the window and staring up at the trillions of stars, constellations, planets and galaxies surrounding him.

"And dat one is a neutwon star." Peter exclaimed, beaming as he pointed at the big burning fire ball that was floating through space.

Peter turned around to look at Gamora but instantly locked eyes with his father, his face lighting up as he saw him.

"Daddy!" He cheered, running over and jumping into his dad's arms.

"Hey, Pete." Tony said, hugging him tight, worried he might lose him again.

"I've been wooking at space 'n sitting wiv Gamowa!" Peter basically shouted in his ear.

"That's great, buddy." Tony smiled, putting him back on the ground and watching him lovingly as he bounced over to Gamora.

"Hello, Tony." Gamora gave him a small smile.

"Hi Gamora." Tony nodded, before he returned to the lower deck.

Tony waltzed over to one of the many chairs and sat down, putting his head in his hands.

"Ugh. What am I supposed to do? I'm a failure. I failed him before and now I've failed him again." 

"You haven't failed him." Quill said, coming out of nowhere and startling Tony.

"He's three." Tony gave him a stern look, trying to convey to him that he wasn't going to drop this.

"I have no idea how or why this happened, but what I do know is that he loves you, and you love him." Quill patted him on the shoulder and gave him a small, reassuring smile.

"Yeah, he's a great kid. I love him so much, and now this asshole, Raon, thinks he can just stroll on up here and ruin everything."

"I-" Quill was interrupted by Strange stumbling into the room, a look of shock on his face.

He looked a mess. He was shaking and his eyes were wide and bloodshot.

"He-he's here." He managed to blurt out.

"Who?" Tony asked hastily, standing up.

"Raon."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it was short. Writers block is annoying and I usually find it hard to write after it. I've got a good plan for the rest of the story. I can't wait to write it! :)
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this chapter. :)


End file.
